Last updated on March 13, 2014 at 21:25 EDT  Beans’ Defenses
mean Bacteria Get Evolutionary Helping Hand  September 10, 2009
Bean plants’ natural defences against bacterial infections could
be unwittingly driving the evolution of more highly pathogenic
bacteria, according to new research published today in Current
Biology.  The study sheds new light on how bacterial pathogens
evolve and adapt to stresses from host plants. This information
could help researchers develop new ways of tackling pathogens
that cause extensive and costly damage to beans and other food
crops.  The scientists from Imperial College London and the
University of the West of England (UWE) focused on a bacterial
pathogen called Pseudamonas syringae, which causes a disease
called halo blight, in bean plants. Symptoms include brown spots
on the leaves, surrounded by a yellow halo. The disease can
cause bean plants to lose their leaves, wilt and die, and is a
serious problem for farmers worldwide.  The research team
observed that a French be