Bacterial wetwood, also known as slime flux, is caused by an infection of one or more of several bacteria. Enterobacter cloacae (Erwinia nimipressuralis) has been implicated as the cause of wetwood in elm, but numerous other bacteria (including Clostridium, Klebsiella, Bacillus megaterium, and Pseudomonas) have been associated with this disease in other trees. We found in oak trees Klebsiella pneumonia, Pantoea agglomerans, Yersinia enterocolitica and Proteus penneri. Diagnostic has been done by BIOLOG. Looks quite scary... Has anybody found similar species?
Alexey. I think no problem. The levels of endophytic microorganisms in plants are very different. There is not only pathogens of plants or pathogens infecting other groups of organisms, such as insects, among them. Ability of microorganisms exist in plant tissues without harming them depends on the immune system of plants. See the article "C.W. BACON AND D.M. HINTON BACTERIAL ENDOPHYTES: THE ENDOPHYTIC NICHE, ITS OCCUPANTS, AND ITS UTILITY S.S. Gnanamanickam (ed.), Plant-Associated Bacteria, 155–194. © 2006 Spinger. Printed in the Netherlands." and Andrea Porras-Alfaro, Paul Bayman Hidden Fungi, Emergent Properties: Endophytes and Microbiomes // Annu. Rev. Phytopathol. 2011. 49:291–315, Minu M. Ali and Dipak Vora Bacillus thuringiensis as Endophyte of Medicinal Plants: Auxin Producing Biopesticide International Research Journal of Environment SciencesVol. 3(9), 27-31, September (2014) Int. Res. J. Environment Sci". I think some human pathogens may also exist as endophytes in plant tissues. Our colleagues from Irkutsk (Russia) actively work on this problem.
About wetwood disease of oak. Active dissemination of bacterial rot of oak, especially in urban areas, is related primarily with the limited genetic diversity of trees themselves, because many landings are grown from acorns of one high productive tree which may be not genetically resistant to pathogens. But nature abhors uniformity. Moreover, using of pesticides for the protection of oak plants, if it is carried out, leads to a limitation of diversity of endophytic microbiota of oak, and also reduces the efficiency of the immune system of plants. And it’s a cascade reaction.
@Igor, I think that most of species associated with wetwood have no relation to the disease, but they are the source of infection for other organisms.
We studied diversity of bacteria associated with crown galls (Agrobacterium tumefaciens), potato rot, and bacteria carried by plant pests (mites, etc.). There are a lot of strains similar to pathogens of animals.
Bacterial infection of plants increase in several folds population of semi-pathogenic for plant bacteria and reduce normal epiphytes and endophytes. I assume that wide spread of bacterial plant diseases (and pests) may cause eventually outbreaks of some animals diseases as well. This year we have a high appearance of bacterial plant diseases on different crops across all country and outbreak of diseases of small animals (field mice, insect-eating animals, etc.). I am afraid that wetwood - infected trees is a part of such chain.
My master student also is working on this disease nowadays, we have also found many types of bacteria inside cankers, still trying to do some pathogenicity tests to find out which one is causative pathogen for this disease.
@Reza, good luck to you! I think that to find the origin of infection is the most important - there are two possible sources: soil and wood-damaging pests and nematodes. The true pathogens can be found in tissues surrounding the symptomatic wood.
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