Microbial Pathogenesis, cilt.210, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
Opium poppy (Papaver somniferum) is a pharmaceutically and economically strategic crop in which bacterial diseases cause measurable yield and quality losses. Yet the evidence base for diagnostics in poppy is fragmented, taxonomically inconsistent, and constrained by the crop's narcotic status. This review synthesizes historical records and updates taxonomy for priority taxa—most notably seed-borne Xanthomonas campestris pv. papavericola and soft-rot agents within Pectobacterium spp.—and compares conventional, molecular, immunological, point-of-care, and non-invasive optical/spectral approaches with a focus on fitness-for-purpose in poppy matrices (seed, capsule, vegetative tissues). We propose a unified, three-stage diagnostic workflow—screening (multiplex qPCR/LAMP with internal controls and viability-aware PMA/PMAxx-qPCR), target-specific confirmation (amplicon/targeted sequencing or ddPCR), and omics-level validation & QA—explicitly aligned with internationally recognized standards. The review integrates analytical performance with operational and economic considerations (throughput, matrix inhibition, LoB/LoD/LoQ reporting, measurement uncertainty) and maps diagnostic outputs into Integrated Disease Management (IDM) via threshold-based decision rules and precision-agriculture surveillance (UAV/HSI-assisted hotspot detection followed by molecular confirmation). We identify critical evidence gaps—poppy-specific inclusivity/exclusivity panels, inter-laboratory ring tests, validated molecular markers and primers, and real-time seed-health surveillance—and outline a phased regulatory pathway suited to narcotic-status constraints (license-bound sampling, chain-of-custody, and cross-border equivalence). Collectively, this roadmap translates contemporary diagnostic technologies into implementable, accreditation-ready practice for P. somniferum, enabling earlier, more reliable detection and directly informing sustainable IDM.