RAPID EVOLUTION OF PLANT PATHOGENS HAMPERS THE MANAGEMENT OF CROP DISEASE. NEW TECHNOLOGIES FOR GENOME SEQUENCING HAVE PRODUCED MAJOR ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE OF PLANT PATHOGEN EVOLUTION. MEANWHILE, PLANT PATHOLOGISTS HAVE LONG STUDIED THE SPREAD OF PATHOGENS, A SUBDISCIPLINE KNOWN AS PLANT DISEASE EPIDEMIOLOGY. THIS PROJECT WILL USE BACTERIAL SPOT OF TOMATO AS A MODEL SYSTEM TO CONNECT PATHOGEN SPREAD WITH PATHOGEN EVOLUTION DURING A DISEASE EPIDEMIC. BACTERIAL SPOT IS THE MOST ECONOMICALLY IMPORTANT BACTERIAL DISEASE AFFECTING THE FLORIDA TOMATO INDUSTRY AND IS A DEVASTATING DISEASE WORLDWIDE. THIS RESEARCH WILL QUANTIFY CHANGES IN THEXANTHOMONAS PERFORANSGENOME DURING THE TOMATO GROWING SEASON IN FLORIDA AND CONNECT SPECIFIC GENE CONTENT TO PATHOGEN EPIDEMIOLOGY. INTEGRATION OF EPIDEMIOLOGY AND PATHOGEN EVOLUTIONARY GENOMICS WILL ADVANCE THE SUSTAINABILITY OF U.S. AGRICULTURE AND FOOD SYSTEMS BY ENHANCING REAL-TIME DISEASE MONITORING AND PREDICTABILITY OF DISEASE SPREAD.