Molecular evidence for the presence of huanglongbing in Pakistan

The presence of Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus in citrus orchards in the North-West Frontier Province of Pakistan has been confirmed. Samples of DNA extracted from leaves of putatively infected citrus plants and from the vector of the disease, Diaphorina citri, were subjected to analysis using PCR and produced DNA amplicons characteristic of this bacterium. To confirm the exact nature of the pathogen, amplicons were sequenced and the resulting data showed 100% identity with published sequences of the Ca. L. asiaticus rplKAJL-rpoBC operon.