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Student 10-Minute Presentation Competition

Plant-Insect Ecosystems

Student Competition

Student

Grad 10-min Competition: P-IE, Genetics

Accusation success rate of X-disease by the leafhopper Euscelidius variegatus from positive sweet cherry trees

Monday, November 10, 2025
8:00 AM - 8:12 AM Pacific
Location: Oregon Convention Center, D133-134, OCC
Oral Presentation Student Competition
The Pacific Northwest is currently experiencing an outbreak of Cherry X-Disease, but the rate of spread in Wasco County, OR, is slower than in other areas. Euscelidius variegatus is a known vector of cherry X-disease and the predominant species of leafhopper found in managed orchards in Wasco County, OR, where most of Oregon’s sweet cherries are grown. While past studies have demonstrated that the leafhopper species E. variegatus is an effective vector of the X-disease phytoplasma, we believe that it is important to reexamine how well this species acquires this phytoplasma using modern polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques. Leafhoppers were reared in a laboratory colony to ensure the sample population was X-disease-free. A population of leafhoppers was placed in a screen cage with an infected cherry tree sapling for 3 days, then moved into a holding cage with white clover (Trifollum repens). A subsample of leafhoppers was removed weekly for 30 days. Collected insects were dissected, and the salivary gland and midgut were tested separately for the presence of X-disease phytoplasma. Quantifying E. variegatus transmission efficiency will aid in our understanding of the rate of spread of this serious disease.