Journal of Citrus Pathology

Huanglongbing (HLB) disease is found throughout Asia, in Brazil, Mexico, the USA, and parts of Africa and has seriously affected citrus production in many regions.  The three species of the Candidatus Liberibacter which have been identified are Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus, Candidatus. L. americanus, and Candidatus L. africanus.

We discuss here improvements in the AmplifyRP™ platform which allow for easy, accurate, and specific detection and identification of the three causative species of HLB.  The single-component test systems allow for the use of either purified nucleic acid preps or crude extracts prepared from psyllids or plant tissue.  Comparisons with other detections will be discussed.