Genómica helping the wine

2003/02/11 Elhuyar Zientzia

• Genetika
• Mikrobiologia
• Nekazaritza

Pierce's disease seriously affects the vineyards of California. Now they have decoded the genome of the culprit and expect it to help them combat it.

The name of the culprit is Xylella fastidiosa. This bacterium is introduced into the plants by an insect that feeds on the sweat of the plants. Subsequently, the bacterium reproduces and disperses, preventing the flow of nutrients necessary for the plants.

To control the disease, winegrowers tend to prune contaminated shoots. Since the early 1990s, however, the vineyards have been attacked by a larger insect than usual and also eats old parts of the plant. Therefore, it is impossible to prune the affected parts without killing the plant.

Thanks to the work carried out by the researchers of the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil, it has been possible to know the mechanism by which the bacterium attacks the plant and new possibilities of finding solutions have been opened.