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Poster

Session: Session 2 Presenting Authors at Posters (Odds)

P-205 - Field Performance of Transgenic Citrus sinensis Expressing Arabidopsis EFR Reveals Resistance to Citrus Canker and Agronomic Trade-Offs

Wednesday, July 16, 2025
13:30 - 15:15  
Location: Confex Hall 3
Engineering plant-microbe traits

    Presenting Author(s)

  • AD

    Alessandra Alves De Souza

    Scientific Researcher
    Citrus Research Center "Sylvio Moreira" - Agronomic Institute/IAC
    Cordeiropolis, Sao Paulo, Brazil

    • Author(s)

  • MS

    Mariana Souza e Silva

    Post-Doc
    Citrus Research Center "Sylvio Moreira" - Agronomic Institute/IAC
    Cordeirópolis, Sao Paulo, Brazil

  • VD

    Victoria Stern Da Silva

    Master student
    Citrus Research Center "Sylvio Moreira" - Agronomic Institute/IAC
    Cordeirópolis, Sao Paulo, Brazil

  • GD

    Giovanni Santiango Da Silva

    PhD student
    Citrus Research Center "Sylvio Moreira" - IAC
    Cordeirópolis, Sao Paulo, Brazil

  • LF

    Leonardo Bais Ferreira

    Graduate student
    Citrus Research Center "Sylvio Moreira" - IAC
    Cordeirópolis, Sao Paulo, Brazil

  • CZ

    Cyril Zipfel

    Institute of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of Zurich / The Sainsbury Laboratory
    Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

Citrus canker (CC) and citrus variegated chlorosis (CVC), caused by Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri (Xcc) and Xylella fastidiosa subsp. pauca, respectively, pose significant threats to commercial citrus orchards. All sweet orange varieties are susceptible to both pathogens, and no natural resistance has been identified. In a previous study, we demonstrated that the well-characterized Arabidopsis thaliana ELONGATION FACTOR-TU RECEPTOR (EFR) can recognize the conserved bacterial pathogen-associated molecular pattern elf18 from these pathogens, significantly reducing CVC and CC symptoms in transgenic C. sinensis. To further investigate agronomic traits and the potential for long-term disease resistance, we perform field trial with transgenic lines V4 and V5. The plants were assessed for height, canopy diameter, chlorophyll content, and disease severity. Over two years of evaluation, V4 and V5 plants were significantly shorter and had lower canopy volumes than wild-type (WT) plants. Both V4 and V5 exhibited significantly lower CC severity compared to WT over two years. Interestingly, V5 plants were shorter than V4 and exhibited even lower CC severity, suggesting that a potential trade-off in these plants, which remains to be investigated.