Sorosphaera viticola is a soil-borne, endophytic parasite of grapevine. It is classifi ed within the plasmodiophorids, an enigmatic group of obligate biotrophic parasites of higher plants. Sorosphaera viticola has been found abundantly in the roots of Vitis spp. in Germany and Canada. This may indicate a global distribution of this root parasite. But its biphasic life-cycle, its soil-borne natu...

An adequate method for the safe disposal oi human excreta is perhaps the most important problem which confronts rural sanitarians and public health workers. With the recognition of water as the carrier of many of the filth-borne diseases, more emphasis has been laid in recent years on the extent of soil and ground water pollution in deciding the sanitary and health protective values of these me...

Chitinases catalyze the hydrolysis of chitin, an unbranched polymer of beta-1,4-N-acetylglucosamine. In recent years, soil-borne microorganisms that produce chitinases are considered as potential biocontrol agents against fungi and nematodes which causes diseases of agricultural crops. Chitinases also play an important physiological and ecological role in ecosystems as recyclers of chitin, by g...

Ticks are capable of transmitting numerous pathogens to both humans and their pets. The risks of tick-borne disease risks vary geographically and are determined by the climate, environment, the presence of rodents and other mammal reservoirs, and the species of ticks parasitizing wild and domestic animals. Zoonoses such as Lyme borreliosis, tularemia, and tick-borne rickettsioses can emerge in ...

The organisms of the Order Rickettsiales, in the families Rickettsiaceae and Anaplasmataceae, were reclassified in 2001 following phylogenetic analyses of the 16S rRNA and groESL gene sequences (Dumler and colleagues, 2001). Some Ehrlichia spp. were transferred to the Neorickettsia genus (including E. risticii) and some Ehrlichia spp., including E. phagocytophila (also called E. equi and human ...

Strawberry is an important fruit crop within the UK. To reduce the impact of soil-borne diseases and extend the production season, more than half of the UK strawberry production is now in substrate (predominantly coir) under protection. Substrates such as coir are usually depleted of microbes including arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and consequently the introduction of beneficial microbes i...

Soil-borne diseases are a significant cause of reduction in crop yield. Alternative management soils can enhance the natural disease-controlling organisms soil. This study explores impact alternative production methods on primary soybean disease, charcoal rot, caused by fungus Macrophomina phaseolina. Treatments that could potentially or control disease were implemented, and soil tests conducte...

1 Section of Infectious Diseases, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06512, USA 2Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA 3Department of Basic Medical Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China 4 Institute of Biology and Medical Sciences, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Infection and Immunity, Soocho...