Fighting citrus Huanglongbing with evolutionary principles

Conventional pest management often accelerates the evolution of resistance in pests, resulting in an unsustainable cycle of control. By contrast, evolution-informed pest management (EIPM) can outmaneuver pests by anticipating and exploiting their adaptive constraints. This perspective synthesizes evolutionary principles from wild and cultivated plants to develop durable defenses. As classical biocontrol uses living natural enemies, which is not stable, efficient, or adaptable enough, we highlight the emergence of EIPM, where artificial intelligence (AI) and synthetic biology enable precise design of new biocontrol. As a case study, our recent research identified resistant protein PUB21DN and micropeptide APP3-14 as promising tools against citrus Huanglongbing (HLB), demonstrating the value of combining evolutionary insights with advanced technologies for sustainable agricultural solutions.