{"title":"Complex Forest Tree Diseases – Diagnostics Beyond Koch’s Postulates","authors":"Pierluigi (Enrico) Bonello","doi":"10.1007/s40725-024-00220-w","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<h3 data-test=\"abstract-sub-heading\">Purpose of Review</h3><p>Forest tree diseases are a major contributor to forest degradation and loss of productivity. They are often quite complex in their causation (etiology), especially in the case of forest syndromes, i.e. diseases with multiple causes and concurrent symptoms. Traditionally, to prove pathogenicity of a microbial agent, and thus correctly diagnose the etiology of a disease, plant pathologists must satisfy all of the so-called Koch’s postulates, as mandated by their deontological code. This review examines whether this approach is still current.</p><h3 data-test=\"abstract-sub-heading\">Recent Findings</h3><p>Koch’s postulates state that a pathogen is a microorganism that, after being isolated in pure culture, can reproduce the disease when it is inoculated into a healthy plant. Over the decades, plant pathologists as well as medical scientists have discovered that these postulates are not always applicable in their entirety and that, furthermore, novel approaches based on molecular biology can be very helpful in uncovering relationships between microbes and diseases that are not easily proven using Koch’s postulates.</p><h3 data-test=\"abstract-sub-heading\">Summary</h3><p>I conclude that Koch’s postulates are not a viable approach for many forest tree diseases and propose a set of new guidelines, based on the <i>preponderance of the evidence</i> principle, to integrate this proven approach and bring it into the twenty-first century.</p>","PeriodicalId":48653,"journal":{"name":"Current Forestry Reports","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":9.0000,"publicationDate":"2024-05-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Current Forestry Reports","FirstCategoryId":"97","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1007/s40725-024-00220-w","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"FORESTRY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Purpose of Review
Forest tree diseases are a major contributor to forest degradation and loss of productivity. They are often quite complex in their causation (etiology), especially in the case of forest syndromes, i.e. diseases with multiple causes and concurrent symptoms. Traditionally, to prove pathogenicity of a microbial agent, and thus correctly diagnose the etiology of a disease, plant pathologists must satisfy all of the so-called Koch’s postulates, as mandated by their deontological code. This review examines whether this approach is still current.
Recent Findings
Koch’s postulates state that a pathogen is a microorganism that, after being isolated in pure culture, can reproduce the disease when it is inoculated into a healthy plant. Over the decades, plant pathologists as well as medical scientists have discovered that these postulates are not always applicable in their entirety and that, furthermore, novel approaches based on molecular biology can be very helpful in uncovering relationships between microbes and diseases that are not easily proven using Koch’s postulates.
Summary
I conclude that Koch’s postulates are not a viable approach for many forest tree diseases and propose a set of new guidelines, based on the preponderance of the evidence principle, to integrate this proven approach and bring it into the twenty-first century.
Current Forestry ReportsAgricultural and Biological Sciences-Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
CiteScore
15.90
自引率
2.10%
发文量
22
期刊介绍:
Current Forestry Reports features in-depth review articles written by global experts on significant advancements in forestry. Its goal is to provide clear, insightful, and balanced contributions that highlight and summarize important topics for forestry researchers and managers.
To achieve this, the journal appoints international authorities as Section Editors in various key subject areas like physiological processes, tree genetics, forest management, remote sensing, and wood structure and function. These Section Editors select topics for which leading experts contribute comprehensive review articles that focus on new developments and recently published papers of great importance. Moreover, an international Editorial Board evaluates the yearly table of contents, suggests articles of special interest to their specific country or region, and ensures that the topics are up-to-date and include emerging research.