** AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** THIS PROJECT SUPPORTS THE MISSION OF THEAGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION BY ADDRESSING THE HATCH ACT AREA(S) OF: SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION AND USE, ANDPLANT AND ANIMAL PRODUCTION, PROTECTION, AND HEALTH. CURRENTLY, THE PLANT DISEASE KNOWN AS BACTERIAL WILT IS A GLOBAL ISSUE WITH A HIGH FINANCIAL IMPACT ON FARMERS, AND THERE ARE LIMITED MEANS OF CONTROLLING THE CAUSAL AGENT OF THIS DISEASE, THE RALSTONIA SOLANACEARUM SPECIES COMPLEX. THESE PATHOGENS CAN SURVIVE IN THEIR ENVIRONMENT FOR YEARS IN FAVORABLE CONDITIONS, AND THEY ARE ABLE TO SPREAD FROM FARM-TO-FARM BY CONTAMINATING AND DISSEMINATING THROUGH IRRIGATION WATER. WE HAVE A LIMITED UNDERSTANDING OF HOW RALSTONIA WILT PATHOGENS SURVIVE IN THEIR ENVIRONMENT AT A MOLECULAR LEVEL, AND UNDERSTANDING HOW THESE PATHOGENS SURVIVE WILL HELP USE DEVELOP NEW MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES FOR THEM. THIS RESEARCH PROJECT IS INVESTIGATING THE MOLECULAR BASIS FOR HOW RALSTONIA WILT PATHOGENS SURVIVE IN WATER USING A HIGH-THROUGHPUT GENETIC TOOL THAT ALLOWS US TO SCREEN THOUSANDS OF GENES AT ONCE. SPECIFICALLY, WITH A SINGLE EXPERIMENT, WE HAVE GENERATED DATA THAT ASSOCIATES A SCORE FOR NEARLY THREE-QUARTERS OF THE GENES WITHIN THE GENOME OF A RALSTONIA WILT PATHOGEN, AND THE SCORE INDICATES THE GENE'S CONTRIBUTION TO THE PATHOGEN'S ABILITY TO SURVIVE IN WATER. THIS PROJECT AIMS TO SUMMARIZE THE LARGE DATA SET IN A MEANINGFUL WAY, COMMUNICATING TO TRANSLATIONAL SCIENTISTS WHAT GENES ARE IMPORTANT FOR ALL RALSTONIA WILT PATHOGENS TO SURVIVE IN WATER. THIS ENSURES THAT MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES CAN BE DEVELOPED IN A MANNER THAT TARGETS THE FULL, GLOBAL DIVERSITY OF RALSTONIA WILT PATHOGENS, AS OPPOSED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF A MANAGEMENT STRATEGY THAT HAS A NARROW RANGE OF EFFECTIVENESS WITH RESPECT TO ALL RALSTONIA WILT PATHOGENS. THE ULTIMATE GOAL OF THIS WORK IS TO FURTHER OUR UNDERSTANDING OF HOW RALSTONIA WILT PATHOGENS OF SPREAD ACROSS THE GLOBE, PERSISTED IN THE ENVIRONMENTS THEY HAVE SPREAD TO, AND HOW WE CAN MANAGE THESE WILT PATHOGENS USING MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES THAT TARGET THE PATHOGENS, BUT NOT THE NATIVE MICROBIOTA THAT PATHOGENS EXIST WITHIN.