$1 Million Citrus Greening Research Project Gets Green Light
July 7, 2015 A $1 million University of Florida research project to fight citrus greening has gotten the go-ahead in the state’s budget.
Nian Wang, a UF/IFAS researcher, is working with a team to develop a microbial-based product, infused with patented plant-defense inducers and beneficial bacteria strains, that he hopes will cure citrus greening.
Wang, a microbiology and cell science professor at the UF/IFAS Citrus Research and Education Center (CREC) in Lake Alfred, also will work on creating greening-resistant trees through the use of a targeted genome engineering technology. Wang’s laboratory is the first to successfully modify the citrus genome using this technology. The technology will be used to create greening-resistant trees by locating the genes within citrus trees that are activated by greening and then effectively removing those genes or altering them so the trees will activate an immune defense against infection.
The technology also will be used to introduce encoded plant host-defense antimicrobial peptides, part of the innate immune response found among all classes of life, and resistance genes against the citrus greening pathogen.
In initial field trials, Wang’s current product formulation has shown positive results, with an approximately 25% decrease in the disease severity of greening. The product also increases the trees’ root growth and strength, builds internal immunity to the disease, and is prolonging the life of the trees beyond anything currently on the market.
“Dr. Wang’s research on managing greening is cutting-edge science based on new technology that was not possible as recent as 10 years ago,” said Michael Rogers, interim director of the CREC, where Wang works. “While no one knows for certain what the final solution to HLB is going to turn out to be, we are appreciative of the funding that has been provided for this project that may ultimately provide the answer to greening needed by Florida citrus growers.”
The project will take three years to complete, with a start date of July 1, 2015, and an anticipated end date of June 30, 2018.
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