Assessing the alleged immobility of the phytopathogenic actinomycete Rhodococcus fascians
D. VEREECKE (1), P. Lambert (2), R. Stamler (2), I. Francis (3), J. Randall (2) (1) Ghent University, Belgium; (2) New Mexico State University, U.S.A.; (3) California State University Bakersfield, U.S.A.

Rhodococcus fascians has been recognized as a promiscuous phytopathogen since 1927. Although its host range is broad, it is mainly comprised of dicotyledonous herbaceous perennials and includes some monocot species. Recently however, Pistachio Bushy Top Syndrome, a novel disease of pistachio in California, New Mexico and Arizona, has been attributed to the combined effects of a new R. fascians strain and an isolate highly related to R. corynebacterioides. Species of the genus Rhodococcus are described in Bergey’s manual as being non-motile actinomycetes, which is a relevant characteristic when considering dissemination mechanisms in the field. Nevertheless, several in vitro and in planta observations suggest that this information might not be correct, at least for the strains analyzed. By examining bacterial behavior in several assays, microscopic evaluation of putative motility structures, screening mutant libraries, and bioinformatics approaches we will try to get insight into this controversial finding.

Abstract Number: P7-216
Session Type: Poster