IRTA Cabrils Mollicutes team

Sustainable Plant Protection Program

Our team is involved in fundamental and applied researches on plant pathogenic phytoplasmas, virus and bacteria, focusing on insect vector transmission, epidemiology and control. The overall objective of the team is to generate knowledge on insect-transmitted plant pathogens to characterize the diversity of pathogens and cycles in the Iberian peninsula to propose integrated control strategies.

Phytoplasmas are plant pathogens limited to the phloem, naturally transmitted by sucking insects of the Hemipteran order. There is no curative treatment for phytoplasmas, for this reason, the control strategies are oriented to avoid the infection. The main tools are quarantine normatives, inoculum elimination, and insect vector control to interfere on the pathological cycle.

Our research focuses on the determination of the etiology, genetic diversity, plant-host range and insect-vector species and its control, especially for Stolbur phytoplasma and the group X of fruit tree phytoplasmoses.

Further readings

SABATÉ, J., LAVIÑA, A., BATLLE, A. 2014. Incidence of Bois Noir phytoplasma in different viticulture regions of Spain and Stolbur isolates distribution in plants and vectors. European  Journal of Plant Pathology 139: 185-193. (https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-014-0378-9)

ACHON, M.A., SERRANO, L., SABATÉ J., PORTA, C. 2015. Understanding the epidemiological factors that intensify the incidence of maize rough dwarf disease in Spain. Annals of Applied Biology 166 (2). (https://doi.org/10.1111/aab.12184)

SABATÉ, J., LAVIÑA, A., BATLLE, A. 2015. Incidence and distribution of ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma prunorum’ and its vector Cacopsylla pruni in Spain: an approach to the epidemiology of the disease and the role of wild Prunus. Plant Pathology  (https://doi.org/10.1111/ppa.12464)

RUIZ-GARCÍA, A. B., SABATÉ, J., LLORIA, O., LAVIÑA, A., BATLLE A., OLMOS, A. 2017. First report of Grapevine Syrah virus-1 in grapevine in Spain. Plant disease. doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-05-17-0700-PDN

SABATÉ, J., RODON, J., ARTIGUES, M., LAVIÑA, A., BATLLE, A. 2017. Transmission of ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma pyri’ by naturally infected Cacopsylla pyri to peach, an approach to the epidemiology of peach yellow leaf roll (PYLR) in Spain. Plant Pathology 67(4) 978-986. (https://doi.org/10.1111/ppa.12809)

BATLLE; N. ALTABELLA; J. SABATE; A. LAVIÑA. 2008. Study of the transmission of Stolbur Phytoplasma to different crop species, by Macrosteles quadripunctulatus (Kirschbaum). Annals of Applied Biology. 152, pp. 235 – 242. (https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1744-7348.2007.00210.x)

GARCIA-CHAPA; J. SABATE; A. LAVIÑA; A. BATLLE. Role of Cacopsylla pyri in the epidemiology of pear decline in Spain. European Journal of Plant Pathology. 111, pp. 9 – 17. 2005 (https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-004-1981-y)