Frankliniella occidentalis facilitate Salmonella enterica survival in the phyllosphere.

ABSTRACT: The human enteric bacterial pathogen Salmonella enterica causes approximately 1.35 million cases of food borne illnesses annually in the United States. Of these salmonellosis cases, almost half are derived from the consumption of fresh, raw produce. Although epiphytic S. enterica populations naturally decline in the phyllosphere, a subset of phytophagous insects have recently been identified as biological multipliers, consequently facilitating the growth of bacterial populations. We investigated whether tomato leaves with macroscopic feeding damage, caused by infestation of adult Western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis), support higher S. enterica populations. To explore this hypothesis, we assessed S. enterica populations in response to thrips feeding by varying insect density,

SUBMITTER: Harrod VL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7895381 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature