Because of its devastating lethality, R. solanacearum is now one of the more intensively studied phytopathogenic bacteria, and bacterial wilt of tomato is a model system for investigating mechanisms of pathogenesis.

[2][6] Ralstonia solanacearum was once considered as a possible biological control agent for Kahili ginger (Hedychium gardnerianum), a highly invasive species.

Besides that, bacterial ooze (which is usually used as a sign for detection) on plant surfaces) can enter the surrounding soil or water, contaminating farming equipment or may be acquired by insect vectors.

The race 3 biovar 2 strain can survive in perennial nightshades which act as secondary hosts, and can also cause bacterial wilt of tomato.

Natural wounds (created by abscission of flowers, genesis of lateral roots) and unnatural ones (by agricultural practices or nematodes and xylem-feeding insects) could become entry sites for R. solanacearum.

Unlike many phytopathogenic bacteria, R. solanacearum potentially requires only one entry site to establish a systemic infection that results in bacterial wilt.

[2] After invading a susceptible host, R. solanacearum multiplies and moves systemically within the plant before bacterial wilt symptoms occur.

In susceptible plants, this sometimes happens slowly and infrequently to prevent pathogen migration, and may instead lead to vascular dysfunction by unspecifically obstructing uncolonized vessels.

[clarification needed] Wilting occurs at high bacterial populations in the xylem and is partially due to vascular dysfunction in which sufficient water cannot reach the leaves.

Ralstonia's systemic toxin also causes loss of stomatal control, but no evidence shows excessive transpiration as its consequence.

[14] Natural genetic transformation is a sexual process involving DNA transfer from one bacterial cell to another through the intervening medium, and the integration of the donor sequence into the recipient genome by homologous recombination.

For example, GALA 7 is necessary for virulence on Medicago truncatula, hinting that T3E diversity may play a role in determining the broad host range of the R. solanacearum species complex.

[2] About half of T3SS proteins are highly conserved in R. solanacearum and likely constitute a very old and stabilized group of effectors in the core genome of the species complex.

The origins of the remaining effectors are unknown, although some researchers hypothesize that gene-for-gene interactions may play a significant role in shaping virulence genes in R.

Race 1 strains have a broad host range including tobacco and bananas, and are usually found in tropical and subtropical environments, as they have trouble surviving cooler temperatures, and are endemic to the southeastern United States.

Race 3 biovar 2 is very common throughout the world, but is not generally reported in North America,[21] so is the focus of many sanitation and quarantine management practices to prevent the introduction or spread of the pathogen.

A milky-white sticky exudate or ooze, consisting of bacterial cells and their extracellular polysaccharide, is usually noticeable in freshly cut-sections of infected tubers.

[28] Ralstonia solanacearum is classified as one of the world's most important phytopathogenic bacteria due to its lethality, persistence, wide host range, and broad geographic distribution.

[2] Ralstonia solanacearum is a high-profile alien plant pathogen of A2 quarantine status affecting a very wide range of crops.

[citation needed] Bacterial wilt caused by R. solanacearum is of economic importance because it infects over 250 plant species in over 50 families.

in Wisconsin, USA [30] and was traced back to the import of geranium cuttings to North America and Europe from the highland tropics where race 3 biovar 2 is endemic [31] Brown rot of potato caused by R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 is among the most serious disease of potato worldwide, and is responsible for an estimated $950 million in losses each year.