Managing Diseases and Weeds of Citrus in a Changing Climate

Author Biography

Rachid Lahlali (Author) Dr. Rachid Lahlali is a Research Professor of Plant Pathology and Microbiology at the Ecole Nationale d'Agriculture de Meknes (ENA-Meknes, Morocco) since 2016. He earned his BSc in Plant Protection from ENA-Meknes, and his MSc and PhD in Agronomy and Biological Sciences with a focus on Plant Pathology from Gembloux Agro-Bio-Tech, University of Liege (Belgium) in 2006. Dr. Lahlali previously worked as a Research Scientist at the University of Saskatchewan (Canadian Light Source Inc.) from 2013 to 2016 and held postdoctoral positions at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Saskatoon Research Centre (2009-2013), the Plant Research Institute, University of Montreal (2007-2009), and Gembloux Agro Bio-Tech, University of Liege (2006-2007). His research interests include plant-microbe interactions, biological control of plant diseases, molecular plant pathology, and plant responses to biotic stresses. Dr. Lahlali has authored over 196 peer-reviewed papers and 15 book chapters, supervised over 35 Master's and 15 Doctoral students, and participated in numerous national and international projects. He is an editor for several journals and a reviewer for many others. At ENA-Meknes, he teaches courses in Plant Pathology, Phyto-epidemiology, and Phyto-mycology, among others. In 2023, Dr. Lahlali was recognized as the World's Top 2% Scientists by Stanford University. Zineb Belabess (Author) Dr. Zineb Belabess is a research scientist at INR-Morocco, specializing in plant virology and entomology. She obtained her State Engineering degree from ENA in 2011. She earned her PhD in virology from Moulay Ismail University in 2017 in collaboration with ENA of Meknes and CIRAD of Montpellier. Her research focuses on two sectors, Citrus, and Vegetable Farming, aiming for a better understanding of the prevalence and genetic diversity of plant viruses in Morocco to mitigate their impact. Her objectives are to ensure competitive and sustainable agriculture in line with the strategic orientations of national agricultural development policies. Her current research projects: (i) Prevention and control of geminiviruses infecting vegetable crops in the Mediterranean basin: GeMed project of the PRIMA (Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area) initiative. Principal investigator, and coordinator of a work package on diagnostics; (ii) Detection and molecular characterization of viruses associated with citrus in the Berkane region: Medium-Term Research Project (PRMT) of INRA. Recipient of a grant from the International Foundation for Science to study potato viruses in the Northeast of Morocco. Dr. Belabess has authored and co-authored 45 papers in plant pathology and plant protection, focusing on viruses affecting citrus and tomato plants. She has also supervised several students in plant pathology, collaborating with ENA-Meknes.