ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT Plant pathogenic bacteria occupy a wide host range in almost all the regions of Earth and in almost all types of plant systems. This group of pathogens, which mainly belong to the Xanthomonadaceae, Pseudomonadaceae, and Enterobacteriaceae families, target all types of plants that can supply appropriate food and shelter on their surfaces as well as in their tissue regions. The genera most often represented are Erwinia, Pectobacterium, Pantoea, Agrobacterium, Pseudomonas, Ralstonia, Burkholderia, Acidovorax, Xanthomonas, Clavibacter, Streptomyces, Xylella, Spiroplasma, and Phytoplasma. Phytopathogenic bacteria often cause hormonal imbalances in infected plants that result in stunting, overgrowth, galls, root branches, defoliation, resetting, leaf epinasty, and others. These problems alter the nutrition levels of affected plants on qualitative and quantitative levels; in addition, they negatively impact global food supplies and economics. Worst of all, phytopathogen-infested plants spread toxic molecules to herbivores and carnivores through the natural food chain, which can collapse entire ecosystems.
