Leaf blight disease of rice caused by Pantoea: profile of an increasingly damaging disease in rice

Leaf blight is one of the most destructive diseases of rice crops, which becomes a devastating problem in rice agroecosystems and is commonly associated with Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae infestation. Recently, several reports worldwide illustrated that leaf blight disease of rice could also be caused by bacteria belonging to the genus Pantoea. Major rice-producing countries in the world are being affected by this newly emerged pathogenic agent, which has posed a critical threat to global rice production. The symptomatic leaves showed similar patterns of infection with X. oryzae pv. oryzae-caused leaf blight, and the disease was able to cause great rice grain reduction. This paper has conducted a series of investigations concerning the incidences of Pantoea-related leaf blight disease, molecular characteristics of the Pantoea species associated with leaf blight disease, symptoms, and epidemiology, as well as proposed efficient control measures to combat these phytopathogenic bacteria.