N. McRoberts
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View article: Spatial and temporal detection of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’ in Diaphorina citri through optimized scouting, sampling, DNA isolation, and qPCR amplification in California citrus groves
Spatial and temporal detection of ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’ in Diaphorina citri through optimized scouting, sampling, DNA isolation, and qPCR amplification in California citrus groves Open
Huanglongbing (citrus greening disease) is caused by the bacterium ‘ Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’ ( C Las) (Alphaproteobacteria) and is one of the most destructive bacterial-vector diseases affecting the citrus industry. The bacteriu…
View article: Application of the theory of planned behaviour to understand citrus stakeholders’ intention to manage quarantine plant pest outbreaks
Application of the theory of planned behaviour to understand citrus stakeholders’ intention to manage quarantine plant pest outbreaks Open
In the European Union (EU), after an outbreak of a quarantine plant pest, contingency plans help to mitigate its progression. However, opposition to their implementation limits their effectiveness and leads to social unrest, together with …
View article: Theories for Understanding the Effect of Impact Assessment and Project Evaluation on the Practice of Science
Theories for Understanding the Effect of Impact Assessment and Project Evaluation on the Practice of Science Open
We examine the phenomenon of impact assessment in the practice of scientific research, paying attention to the context in which project evaluation is used in federally funded research on plant health in the United States. Our analysis, whi…
View article: Free-Riding in Plant Health: A Social-Ecological Systems Approach to Collective Action
Free-Riding in Plant Health: A Social-Ecological Systems Approach to Collective Action Open
Plant disease epidemics often transcend land management boundaries, creating a collective-action problem where a group must cooperate in a common effort to maximize individual and group benefits. Drawing upon the social-ecological systems …
View article: Alternative Tissue Sampling for Improved Detection of Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus
Alternative Tissue Sampling for Improved Detection of Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus Open
Early detection and prompt response are key factors in the eradication of ‘huanglongbing’ (HLB) in California. Currently, qPCR testing of leaf tissue guides the removal of infected trees. However, because of the uneven distribution of ‘Can…
View article: A Global Assessment of the State of Plant Health
A Global Assessment of the State of Plant Health Open
The Global Plant Health Assessment (GPHA) is a collective, volunteer-based effort to assemble expert opinions on plant health and disease impacts on ecosystem services based on published scientific evidence. The GPHA considers a range of f…
View article: The value of volunteer surveillance for the early detection of biological invaders
The value of volunteer surveillance for the early detection of biological invaders Open
View article: The value of volunteer surveillance for the early detection of biological invaders
The value of volunteer surveillance for the early detection of biological invaders Open
Early detection of invaders requires finding small numbers of individuals across large landscapes. It has been argued that the only feasible way to achieve the sampling effort needed for early detection of an invader is to involve voluntee…
View article: Collective action in the area-wide management of an invasive plant disease
Collective action in the area-wide management of an invasive plant disease Open
Area-wide management (AWM) is a strategy for invasive plant pests and diseases in which management actions are coordinated across property boundaries to target the entire pest or pathogen population in an area. Because some people may bene…
View article: Perceived Vulnerability and Propensity to Adopt Best Management Practices for Huanglongbing Disease of Citrus in California
Perceived Vulnerability and Propensity to Adopt Best Management Practices for Huanglongbing Disease of Citrus in California Open
Huanglongbing (HLB) disease of citrus, which is associated with the bacterium ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’, has been confined to residential properties in Southern California 8 years after it was first detected in the state. To prev…
View article: Institutional approaches for plant health provision as a collective action problem
Institutional approaches for plant health provision as a collective action problem Open
The provision of plant health has public good attributes when nobody can be excluded from enjoying its benefits and individual benefits do not reduce the ability of others to also benefit. These attributes increase risk of free-riding on p…
View article: Characterization of Pathogen Airborne Inoculum Density by Information Theoretic Analysis of Spore Trap Time Series Data
Characterization of Pathogen Airborne Inoculum Density by Information Theoretic Analysis of Spore Trap Time Series Data Open
In a previous study, air sampling using vortex air samplers combined with species-specific amplification of pathogen DNA was carried out over two years in four or five locations in the Salinas Valley of California. The resulting time serie…
View article: Canine Olfactory Detection of a Non-Systemic Phytobacterial Citrus Pathogen of International Quarantine Significance
Canine Olfactory Detection of a Non-Systemic Phytobacterial Citrus Pathogen of International Quarantine Significance Open
For millennia humans have benefitted from application of the acute canine sense of smell to hunt, track and find targets of importance. In this report, canines were evaluated for their ability to detect the severe exotic phytobacterial arb…
View article: Characterization of Pathogen Air-Borne Inoculum Density by Information Theoretic Analysis of Spore Trap Time Series Data
Characterization of Pathogen Air-Borne Inoculum Density by Information Theoretic Analysis of Spore Trap Time Series Data Open
Air sampling using vortex air samplers combined with species specific amplification of pathogen DNA, was carried out over two years in four or five locations in the Salinas Valley of California. The resulting time series data for the abund…
View article: Mutual Information as a Performance Measure for Binary Predictors Characterized by Both ROC Curve and PROC Curve Analysis
Mutual Information as a Performance Measure for Binary Predictors Characterized by Both ROC Curve and PROC Curve Analysis Open
The predictive receiver operating characteristic (PROC) curve differs from the more well-known receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve in that it provides a basis for the evaluation of binary diagnostic tests using metrics defined co…
View article: Development of an IPM Strategy for Thrips and Tomato spotted wilt virus in Processing Tomatoes in the Central Valley of California
Development of an IPM Strategy for Thrips and Tomato spotted wilt virus in Processing Tomatoes in the Central Valley of California Open
Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV; species Tomato spotted wilt orthotospovirus; genus Orthotospovirus; family Tospoviridae) is a thrips-transmitted virus that can cause substantial economic losses to many crops, including tomato (Solanum lyc…
View article: Information Graphs Incorporating Predictive Values of Disease Forecasts
Information Graphs Incorporating Predictive Values of Disease Forecasts Open
Diagrammatic formats are useful for summarizing the processes of evaluation and comparison of forecasts in plant pathology and other disciplines where decisions about interventions for the purpose of disease management are often based on a…
View article: Spinach Growers Value Host Resistance and Synthetic Fungicides in the Fight against Downy Mildew
Spinach Growers Value Host Resistance and Synthetic Fungicides in the Fight against Downy Mildew Open
California spinach growers struggle to manage spinach downy mildew disease. The disease is especially difficult in the organic crop, which currently relies on resistant varieties to maintain disease-free crop. Alternative control measures …
View article: Referee report. For: Invariance in ecological pattern [version 1; peer review: 2 approved]
Referee report. For: Invariance in ecological pattern [version 1; peer review: 2 approved] Open
View article: Using Game Theory to Understand Systemic Acquired Resistance as a Bet-Hedging Option for Increasing Fitness When Disease Is Uncertain
Using Game Theory to Understand Systemic Acquired Resistance as a Bet-Hedging Option for Increasing Fitness When Disease Is Uncertain Open
Systemic acquired resistance (SAR) is a mechanism through which plants may respond to initial challenge by a pathogen through activation of inducible defense responses, thereby increasing resistance to subsequent infection attempts. Fitnes…
View article: Cryptic Infection and Systemic Colonization of Leguminous Crops by <i>Verticillium dahliae</i>, the Cause of Verticillium Wilt
Cryptic Infection and Systemic Colonization of Leguminous Crops by <i>Verticillium dahliae</i>, the Cause of Verticillium Wilt Open
Verticillium dahliae, the cause of Verticillium wilt, is a widespread pathogen that affects many crops in California and throughout the world. Cover cropping with leguminous species is often integrated into a rotation scheme for its contri…
View article: Projecting Monterey Pine (Pinus radiata) Populations over Time in the Presence of Various Representations of Pitch Canker Disease, Caused by Fusarium circinatum
Projecting Monterey Pine (Pinus radiata) Populations over Time in the Presence of Various Representations of Pitch Canker Disease, Caused by Fusarium circinatum Open
Monterey pine (Pinus radiata D. Don) is native to California and widely planted in Mediterranean climates around the world. Pitch canker, a disease caused by Fusarium circinatum Nirenberg and O’Donnell, is a serious threat to P. radiata in…
View article: Using models to provide rapid programme support for California's efforts to suppress Huanglongbing disease of citrus
Using models to provide rapid programme support for California's efforts to suppress Huanglongbing disease of citrus Open
We describe a series of operational questions posed during the state-wide response in California to the arrival of the invasive citrus disease Huanglongbing. The response is coordinated by an elected committee from the citrus industry and …
View article: Virus surveys of commercial vineyards show value of planting certified vines
Virus surveys of commercial vineyards show value of planting certified vines Open
Viruses are of great concern in vineyards. They cost the California wine grape industry as much as $91,661 per acre over the life of a vineyard, according to a 2015 economic study of the North Coast wine-growing region. As a first step tow…
View article: The global burden of pathogens and pests on major food crops
The global burden of pathogens and pests on major food crops Open
View article: Proximal remote sensing to differentiate nonviruliferous and viruliferous insect vectors – proof of concept and importance of input data robustness
Proximal remote sensing to differentiate nonviruliferous and viruliferous insect vectors – proof of concept and importance of input data robustness Open
Proximal remote sensing is being widely studied as a noninvasive method to partially automate diagnostics of plants and insects. The hypothesis that proximal remote sensing can be used to differentiate specimens of adult beet leafhoppers (…
View article: Referee report. For: The common patterns of abundance: the log series and Zipf's law [version 1; peer review: 4 approved]
Referee report. For: The common patterns of abundance: the log series and Zipf's law [version 1; peer review: 4 approved] Open
View article: Summary Measures of Predictive Power Associated with Logistic Regression Models of Disease Risk
Summary Measures of Predictive Power Associated with Logistic Regression Models of Disease Risk Open
For an ordinary least-squares regression model, the coefficient of determination (R 2 ) describes the proportion (or percentage) of variance of the response variable explained by the model, and is a widely accepted summary measure of predi…
View article: Closing the extension gap: Information and communication technology in sustainable agriculture
Closing the extension gap: Information and communication technology in sustainable agriculture Open
As the information revolution sweeps through the agricultural sector, extension professionals may be lagging behind their clients in the use of information and communication technology (ICT) such as social media, which could be a valuable …
View article: Growers' risk perception and trust in control options for huanglongbing citrus-disease in Florida and California
Growers' risk perception and trust in control options for huanglongbing citrus-disease in Florida and California Open