Batuman Lab Research Projects and Services

Batuman lab is split into two main labs, the multifaceted Citrus Pathology Lab and the HLB Lab which is solely committed to citrus greening, also known as HuangLongBing (HLB).

Dr. Batuman has various ongoing research projects in these labs aimed at understanding different aspects of pest and pathogens within citrus hosts, including disease interactions, biology, epidemiology, genetics, and genomics-based studies. Some of the major citrus diseases we research are the economically important and devastating Citrus Greening (HLB), Citrus Canker, Citrus Black Spot (CBS), and many more.

Additionally, the lab conducts Florida tomato virus research, has an ongoing collaboration with Bayer Crop Sciences, and provides citrus diagnostics services to the local citrus growing community.

Bayer Crop Science Collaboration

Greenhouse screening of chemical compounds to evaluate efficacy and field application potential against citrus greening (HLB)

Biological Control of the Asian Citrus Psyllid using Insect-Specific Viruses

Molecular research of virus and ACP interactions to find genes of interest for lethally targeting the ACP to decrease HLB transmission

Citrus Disease Diagnostics

Assisting the Plant Disease Diagnostic Clinic with citrus disease samples

Development of Automated Delivery System for Citrus Therapeutics

Researching new mechanical techniques to aid the application of liquid materials with curative capability against major citrus diseases

Field Trials

Testing chemical applications for diseases including Citrus Black Spot and Citrus Canker

Improving In-Field and Lab Disease Detection Using Advanced Molecular Tools

Using advanced molecular tools such as CRISPR Cas-13a, RPA, RCA, and LAMP for optimizing in-field protocols

Metagenomic and Network Analysis within the Agro-Ecological Landscape

Disease forecasting and analysis of disease prevalence and interactions with different hosts

Transgene-free citrus using CRISPR-CAS9

Producing transgene-free HLB resistant or tolerant citrus plants