Plant health Scientists

Abstract

Plant health Scientists from Papua New Guinea (PNG), Timor Leste and the Solomon Islands conduct regular surveys together with counterparts from Australia. A major aim of these is to detect new incursions of plant pests. A major pathogen group targeted on these surveys is Begomoviruses. The genus Begomovirus is highly complex, fluid and constantly changing, because recombination occurs readily when several different begomoviruses with common hosts co-exist together, as is the case in much of South East Asia and India. By 2008, there were 180 recognised species, 87 unassigned isolates and numerous sequence variants within individual species (Fauquet et al. 2008). A major bacterial target has been Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. manihotis (Xam), cause of bacterial blight of cassava. This disease has a devastating impact in South East Asia, but has only reached certain close by islands in the north west Pacific. Phytophthora capsici is widespread throughout South east Asia and is known to cause the important disease, foot rot of blackpepper (Piper Nigrum) (Manohara et al. 2004).