Our Research

FL-1 Study: Longitudinal (time course) studies of HLB EDT earliness in Florida

Project ID:

5300-178

Principal Investigator:

Neil McRoberts

Principal Investigator Affiliation:

University of California, Davis

Co-Investigators:

N/A

Collaborators:

  • Carolyn Slupsky
  • Johan Leveau
  • Greg McCollum
  • Peggy Heiser

Start Date:

2016

Estimated Duration:

3 year(s)

Completed Date:

10/2019

Annual Funding:

N/A

Huanglongbing (HLB) is a bacterium which infects and kills citrus trees, and is responsible for dramatic declines in citrus production in Florida and Texas. Currently, HLB has been detected by regulatory qPCR in two adjacent neighborhoods south of Los Angeles in California, and many citrus growing regions of California are quarantined for ACP. Early detection technologies are being developed and deployed to detect the disease earlier than regulatory qPCR. The proposed study will use a longitudinal design to compare results of four EDTs on 200 pot-gown trees in Florida and up to 20 field grown trees in California over two years in order to identify the EDT(s) with maximal capacity to identify HLB infection at the earliest stage possible to mitigate the impact of HLB on growers. Modeling will be used to assess the long-term impact on HLB spread.

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