Forest Health and Pathology
Summary
Forest health and pathology encompasses the study of the myriad factors that influence the vitality of tree-dominated ecosystems, from microscopic pathogens and insect pests to abiotic stresses such as drought and pollution. Tree diseases can undermine timber production, compromise carbon sequestration and diminish the many ecosystem services forests provide, including habitat provision, water regulation and recreational value. Global change—chiefly climate warming and intensified trade in plant material—has increased the frequency and severity of disease outbreaks, as warming winters improve pathogen overwintering and novel pathogens are introduced into naïve host populations. Understanding the life cycles of fungi, bacteria, oomycetes and insect vectors, and their interactions with host defences, is therefore essential. Interdisciplinary strategies now combine molecular diagnostics, remote sensing, epidemiological modelling and silvicultural practice to anticipate emerging threats, to monitor existing epidemics and to develop integrated management frameworks. These frameworks seek to reduce inoculum levels through targeted sanitation, to bolster host resistance via breeding and to apply biological control agents that selectively inhibit pathogens and pests. By integrating ecological theory, technological innovation and practical forestry, researchers aim to safeguard forest health and the services upon which human society depends.
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Forest Health and Pathology publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in forest health and pathology across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Inoculum: The total population of pathogen propagules (such as spores or other infective units) capable of initiating disease in a susceptible host.
Biotrophic pathogen: An organism, often a fungus or oomycete, that derives nutrition from living host tissue while keeping cells alive during infection.
Oospore: A thick-walled sexual spore of oomycetes that ensures long-term survival under adverse conditions and acts as a persistent source of inoculum.
Epidemiological model: A mathematical or computational framework that simulates processes of host–pathogen interaction, including inoculum production, dispersal and infection risk, to forecast disease spread.
Environmental filtering: The process by which abiotic factors such as temperature, moisture or pH determine which species from a regional pool can establish and thrive in a particular habitat.
References
- Climate acts as an environmental filter to plant pathogens. The ISME Journal: Multidisciplinary Journal of Microbial Ecology (2024).
- Epidemiological modeling of invasion in heterogeneous landscapes: spread of sudden oak death in California (1990–2030). Ecosphere (2011).
- The Effect of Forest Management Options on Forest Resilience to Pathogens. Frontiers in Forests and Global Change (2020).
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