Evaluation of oleander accessions for resistance to Pseudomonas savastanoi pv. nerii

Nine oleander accessions were evaluated for resistance to Pseudomonas savastanoi pv. nerii, causal agent of the oleander knot disease. None of the accessions was resistant when tested with three bacterial strains of different virulence, but they varied significantly in the severity of symptoms induced by these strains. The most susceptible accessions "Dark Salmon" (dark salmon flower) showed deformation of stems, leaves and seed pods and secondary knots on aerial parts, whereas the least susceptible one "White" (white flower), inoculated with the least virulent strain, showed neither localized knots at the inoculation point nor secondary symptoms. In this study an in vitro test, based on prick inoculation of leaf segments, was optimised for use in pathogenicity tests or as an in vitro resistance screening test

A feasibility study of tomato fruit quality assessment and traceability by X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy and statistical analysis

X-ray fluorescence (XRF) measurements were performed on dried tomato samples coming from “Pachino district”, a geographical area recognized by the European Community with the “Protected Geographical Indication” (PGI) label. The purpose of this study is to establish a protocol for in-situ analysis in order to provide a fast and reliable technique for quality assessment and traceability of PGI products. Experimental data were studied by using Principal Component Analysis. The results show the presence of several characterizing elements, which establish a clear fingerprint pattern associated with the geographical origin of this product. Implications and perspectives in applying XRF analysis in order to disentangle tomato samples coming from different Sicilian geographical areas will be discussed