University of Otago research into the source of the damaging Psa outbreak in New Zealand kiwifruit is likely to help strengthen New Zealand's biosecurity protection.
Sixteen months after the Psa bacterial vine disease was first detected in a Te Puke orchard in late 2010, Associate Prof Russell Poulter, Prof Iain Lamont and Dr Margi Butler, all of the Otago biochemistry department, are confident they will discover the source of the outbreak.
Through a process of elimination, Chinese pollen appears to be the likely source of New Zealand's outbreak, and Italy has already been ruled out as a possible source.
Initially, New Zealand did not have the technology to sequence the whole genetic code of the strain found in Te Puke. But the arrival of new advanced genomics technology mid-last year through a government-funded initiative, involving New Zealand Genomics Ltd (NZGL), allowed the Otago biochemists to carry out this urgent work.
The Otago biochemists have obtained some Chinese Psa samples for sequencing and the results indicate that Chinese pollen is the most likely source of the New Zealand outbreak.
NZGL chief executive Dr Tony Lough said the availability of powerful genomic sequencing equipment in Dunedin meant analytical work which previously could have taken a year could now be done in a few weeks and samples no longer had to be sent abroad for analysis.
Tracing the source of the outbreak would help New Zealand strengthen its biosecurity protection, he said.
Prof Poulter said the Psa scenario highlighted the critical importance of having the genomic technology here, given that New Zealand was a major agricultural producer and had to respond quickly if something went wrong.
The Government is spending $40 million over 10 years to establish NZGL, which is a collaboration involving Otago, Auckland and Massey Universities.
