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A leaf from a tree in West Rock Ridge State Park in New Haven shows symptoms of infection from
Beech Leaf Disease. Credit: Craig Brodersen
Beech trees provide food for animals, timber for wood products, and sustenance for
beech drop plants, but they are under threat from beech leaf disease (BLD). The
disease, first documented in 2012 in the Midwest, is associated with the nematode
Litylenchus crenatae mccannii and is spreading rapidly throughout the central and
northeast regions of North America. A team of scientists led by Craig Brodersen,
professor of plant physiological ecology, and Leila Fletcher, postdoctoral associate, at the
Yale School of the Environment (YSE) has uncovered new insights on how the disease
is impacting leaves at the cellular level and provided a novel mechanistic explanation for
the decline of the trees post-infection.
The findings are published in the journal Forest Pathology. Brodersen first became
interested in the disease after noticing the infected trees during a walk in the woods with
his children. "It's a beautiful tree and an important part of the landscape. I wanted to do
something with the tools we have to contribute to a better understanding of what the
disease is doing to the tree. In order to come up with a solution, you have to come at it
from as many angles as possible," he said.
The team studied leaves collected from beech trees at Yale-Myers Forest that hadn't yet
been infected by the nematode, and leaves from infected trees in New Haven's West
Rock Ridge State Park. The presence of the nematode influences the physical or
hormonal regulation of leaf development, which leads to the distinctive dark green stripes
on affected leaves, the research team said.
After comparing the leaf structures at the cellular level, the scientists discovered that
maximum photosynthetic rates were approximately 61% lower in symptomatic leaves and
respiration rates increased as the percentage of affected leaf tissue increased. A
combination of reduced leaf area for photosynthetic tissues, and stomatal deformation
- 429 -
Beech Leaf Disease. Credit: Craig Brodersen
Beech trees provide food for animals, timber for wood products, and sustenance for
beech drop plants, but they are under threat from beech leaf disease (BLD). The
disease, first documented in 2012 in the Midwest, is associated with the nematode
Litylenchus crenatae mccannii and is spreading rapidly throughout the central and
northeast regions of North America. A team of scientists led by Craig Brodersen,
professor of plant physiological ecology, and Leila Fletcher, postdoctoral associate, at the
Yale School of the Environment (YSE) has uncovered new insights on how the disease
is impacting leaves at the cellular level and provided a novel mechanistic explanation for
the decline of the trees post-infection.
The findings are published in the journal Forest Pathology. Brodersen first became
interested in the disease after noticing the infected trees during a walk in the woods with
his children. "It's a beautiful tree and an important part of the landscape. I wanted to do
something with the tools we have to contribute to a better understanding of what the
disease is doing to the tree. In order to come up with a solution, you have to come at it
from as many angles as possible," he said.
The team studied leaves collected from beech trees at Yale-Myers Forest that hadn't yet
been infected by the nematode, and leaves from infected trees in New Haven's West
Rock Ridge State Park. The presence of the nematode influences the physical or
hormonal regulation of leaf development, which leads to the distinctive dark green stripes
on affected leaves, the research team said.
After comparing the leaf structures at the cellular level, the scientists discovered that
maximum photosynthetic rates were approximately 61% lower in symptomatic leaves and
respiration rates increased as the percentage of affected leaf tissue increased. A
combination of reduced leaf area for photosynthetic tissues, and stomatal deformation
- 429 -
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