'Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum', associated with plants in the family Solanaceae

A liberibacter (isolate NZ082226) was detected in a symptomatic tomato plant and subsequently in five other members of the family Solanaceae: capsicum, potato, tamarillo, cape gooseberry and chilli. Phylogenetic analyses of the 16S rRNA gene sequence, the deduced amino acid sequence of the rplJ gene and a partial nucleotide sequence of the beta operon indicated that isolate NZ082226 represents a novel candidate species of 'Candidatus Liberibacter', for which the name 'Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum' is proposed.