Microorganisms have dynamic and complex interactions with their hosts. Diverse microbial communities residing near, on, and within the plants, called phytobiome, are an essential part of plant health and productivity. Exploiting citrus-associated microbiomes represents a scientific approach toward sustained and environment-friendly module of citrus production, though periodically exposed to several threats, with Huanglongbing (HLB) predominantly being most influential. Exploring the composition and function of the citrus microbiome, and possible microbial redesigning under HLB disease pressure has sparked renewed interest in recent times. A concise account of various achievements in understanding the citrus-associated microbiome, in various niche environments viz., rhizosphere, phyllosphere, endosphere, and core microbiota alongside their functional attributes has been thoroughly reviewed and presented. Efforts were also made to analyze the actual role of the citrus microbiome in soil fertility and resilience, interaction with and suppression of invading pathogens along with native microbial communities and their consequences thereupon. Despite the desired potential of the citrus microbiota to counter different pathogenic diseases, utilizing the citrus microbiome for beneficial applications at the field level is yet to be translated as a commercial product. We anticipate that advancement in multiomics technologies, high-throughput sequencing and culturing, genome editing tools, artificial intelligence, and microbial consortia will provide some exciting avenues for citrus microbiome research and microbial manipulation to improve the health and productivity of citrus plants.

Orientia tsutsugamushi, the causative agent of scrub typhus in humans, is an obligate intracytosolic bacterium transmitted among animals and to humans by some species of larval trombiculid mites (chiggers) and is hosted mainly by rodents. In this study, we attempted detection of O. tsutsugamushi from blood and tissue samples of rodents trapped from different locations in Central India using PCR targeting the 56 kDa outer membrane protein gene and the 47 kDa high temperature transmembrane protein gene. A total of 59 rodent samples comprising 38 of blood collected from domestic and public surroundings and 21 of tissue from agricultural farm were included in this study. The 56 kDa outer membrane protein gene was detected from 10 of 59 samples by PCR, and the 47 kDa protein gene was detected from 4 of 59 samples by nested-PCR. Mites collected from the rodents were identified as Ornithonyssus bacoti, and one of five pooled samples was found to be positive for O. tsutsugamushi using PCR targeting 56 kDa outer membrane protein gene. Thus, perpetuation of O. tsutsugamushi among rodents and mites was detected constituting a potential public health concern.

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