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Ecole Nationale Supérieure Agronomique de Montpellier ... - CIAM

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allows summarising in one graph (i) R: the observed excess of points as a function of distance<br />

and (ii) a 95% confi<strong>de</strong>nce interval for each distance class.<br />

Epi<strong>de</strong>miological Interpretations<br />

There are at least three assumptions that can account for the observed in<strong>de</strong>pen<strong>de</strong>nt<br />

evolution of symptom expression in the 4 orchards during the first years of the epi<strong>de</strong>mic: (i)<br />

ESFY has been introduced with the planting material, (ii) the rootstock and/or the cultivar<br />

influence the incubation period, (iii) the vectors have been attracted by 2 cultivars and/or<br />

rootstocks. The pattern for the years 1986-1989 suggests the secondary hypothesis of a<br />

gradient of infectious vectors coming from outsi<strong>de</strong> into the upper orchards.<br />

For the second test, we can give several interpretations of the spatial <strong>de</strong>pen<strong>de</strong>nce<br />

between the nearest neighbours within each group of years: (i) the vectors (progeny inclu<strong>de</strong>d)<br />

infect several neighbouring trees, (ii) short-distance secondary spread and symptom<br />

expression occurs within each group of years, (iii) attractiveness and/or symptom expression<br />

are conditional to an un<strong>de</strong>rlying factor which acts at a short range.<br />

As far as spatial randomness is concerned, each test provi<strong>de</strong>s a clear answer. However,<br />

the matter in epi<strong>de</strong>miology is more often to <strong>de</strong>termine the cause of a given non-randomness<br />

than to simply reject randomness. Therefore, we gave for each test a set of plausible<br />

explanatory assumptions, which are non-exclusive: a pattern can be the result of two<br />

phenomena or more. In or<strong>de</strong>r to link the observations to their cause, it is necessary to keep in<br />

mind that the whole survey relies on the visual <strong>de</strong>tection of the first typical symptoms, so we<br />

have to be aware of the potential role of the incubation period.<br />

These results suggest three major explanatory hypotheses: (i) several neighbouring trees<br />

are probably infected by each vector (or group of vectors), (ii) the combination<br />

rootstock/cultivar could influence the length of the incubation period and (iii) the planting of<br />

diseased material is suspected. These last two points remind us that the impact of the disease<br />

on production can be <strong>de</strong>creased if the planting of highly susceptible cultivars is avoi<strong>de</strong>d and if<br />

all the necessary steps are taken to guarantee the initial sanitary status of the material<br />

(Labonne and Lichou, 2003).<br />

Concluding remarks<br />

Our preliminary results show that a case study, although limited in time and space, is a<br />

way to gain insights into the epi<strong>de</strong>miology of a disease if one carries out a <strong>de</strong>tailed analysis of<br />

both spatial and temporal patterns (a <strong>de</strong>tailed analysis of annual inci<strong>de</strong>nce could provi<strong>de</strong> more<br />

information, but this is out of the scope of this article). The flexible approach of hypothesis<br />

testing is a first step towards mo<strong>de</strong>lling because it summarises and emphasizes the features of<br />

disease spread. These statistical tests also foster the statement of explanatory assumptions,<br />

which can then be inclu<strong>de</strong>d in the conceptual framework of a mechanistic mo<strong>de</strong>l. Our future<br />

work will be <strong>de</strong>dicated to <strong>de</strong>sign a mo<strong>de</strong>l that explicitly takes the vectors into account.<br />

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS<br />

We thank Dr. Sylvie Dallot for her critical analysis of the manuscript.<br />

LITERATURE CITED<br />

Carraro, L., Loi, N. and Ermacora, P. 2001. Transmission characteristics of the European<br />

stone fruit yellows phytoplasma and its vector Cacopsylla pruni. Eur. J. Plant Pathol.<br />

107:695-700.<br />

Carraro, L., Osler, R., Loi, N., Ermacora, P. and Refatti, E. 1998. Transmission of European<br />

stone fruit yellows phytoplasma by Cacopsylla pruni. J. Plant Pathol. 80:233-239.<br />

Chabrolin, C. 1924. Quelques maladies <strong>de</strong>s arbres fruitiers <strong>de</strong> la vallée du Rhône. Annales <strong>de</strong>s<br />

Epiphyties. 10:263-338.<br />

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