Rose rosette emaravirus: Understanding the vector is a key to combat the disease

Roses in North America suffer from the worst disease epidemic ever recorded, rose rosette. The causal agent of the disease, rose rosette emaravirus (RRV), is vectored by eriophyoid mites (Acari: Eriophyoidea). Eriophyoids are the smallest among plant-parasitic arthropods. In addition to feeding damage, they can cause mayhem because of the viruses they vector. There are significant knowledge gaps when it comes to rosette and RRV. This presentation will highlight the progress achieved in the past few years and shed light on management perspectives. The current state of knowledge, including disease epidemiology, and clarification on vectoring species, will be presented. As with all arthropod-vectored diseases, the cornerstone of effective control strategies is the in-depth knowledge of the vector. The systems-based approach to combat the disease includes: (a) surveying the rose-associated mite fauna across the United States; (b) determining which eriophyoid species are capable of transmission; (c) identifying predatory mite species associated with the vector, and (d) evaluating entomopathogenic fungi as potential biopesticides to control eriophyoids in rose. These studies are pivotal in understanding virus-vector interactions and will be the cornerstone of comprehensive rosette management strategies.