Resurgence of bacterial wilt of common bean in North America

Abstract

Bacterial wilt, caused by Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens pv. flaccumfaciens (CFF), was a serious disease of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) in the United States in the early 1970s but was not reported for two decades after that time. Following this absence, the disease was reported again in the United States in North Dakota in 1995 and in Colorado, Nebraska, and Wyoming from 2004 to 2007. In addition to the three coloured variants (yellow, orange and purple) of CFF reported in the United States in 1970s, a new pink variant of the pathogen was discovered in Nebraska in 2008. In Canada, the disease was reported in central Canada (Ontario) in the 1950s. The yellow and orange variants were found in western Canada in 2002, and the purple variant was found in 2006. These recent reports indicate a resurgence of bacterial wilt of bean in North America. The discovery of new variants suggests that the pathogen may be evolving. This minireview examines the resurgence of bacterial wilt of bean in North America, as well as its world distribution, symptoms, host range, and recent research progress in identification and detection, epidemiology, impacts, and methods of control of this disease.