Africa: Madagascar, South Africa, Zimbabwe; North America: USA; South America: Argentina, Brazil.
CO, IL IA, KS, MN, NE, OK, SD, TX, WI
2025-08-15
bacterium
-
Main: sugarcane, corn; Other: soghum
XANTVV
Xanthomonas vasicola pv. vasculorum overwinters in maize residue and spreads when rain or irrigation splashes bacteria onto new plants. Warm, humid conditions favor its spread. Although seedborne transmission can occur in controlled experiments, it appears to be uncommon under natural conditions, with crop residue and environmental dispersal remaining the primary pathways for spread.
In corn, the bacterium primarily survives in crop residue from the previous season and spreads mainly through water splash. Although seed transmission has been demonstrated under artificial conditions, evidence from naturally infected seed is minimal, with detection only at very low frequencies (0.1–0.5% in pooled samples, 2.7% in individual plants). No seedling symptoms were observed in these assays, and live bacteria were not recovered from PCR-positive plants, leaving natural seed transmission unconfirmed and the seed pathway uncertain.
Prevention includes planting clean, tested seed, managing infected crop residue, rotating crops, and controlling grassy weeds that can harbor the pathogen. Reduce splash dispersal through irrigation management and clean equipment to limit field-to-field spread.
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Lang, J.M., DuCharme, E., Ibarra Caballero, J., Luna, E., Hartman, T., Ortiz-Castro, M., Korus, K., Rascoe, J., Jackson-Ziems, T.A., Broders, K. and Leach, J.E., 2017. Detection and characterization of Xanthomonas vasicola pv. vasculorum (Cobb 1894) comb. nov. causing bacterial leaf streak of corn in the United States. Phytopathology, 107(11), pp.1312-1321.
Longhi TV, Robaina RR, Leite RP Jr, Balbi-Peña MI. Survival of Xanthomonas vasicola pv. vasculorum in Soil and in Corn Crop Residues under the Humid Subtropical Climate of Southern Brazil. Life (Basel). 2024 Jun 28;14(7):825.
Gent, D. H., Lang, J. M., Bartolo, M. E., and Schwartz, H. F. 2005. Inoculum sources and survival of Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. allii in Colorado. Plant Dis. 89:507-514.
Gent, D. H., and Schwartz, H. F. 2005. Management of Xanthomonas leaf blight of onion with a plant activator, biological control agents, and copper bactericides. Plant Dis. 89:631-639.
Hartman, T.M., 2018. Investigation of alternative hosts and agronomic factors affecting Xanthomonas vasicola pv. vasculorum, causal agent of bacterial leaf streak of corn. Master Thesis, University of Nebraska, USA.