Pathogenicity of morphologically different isolates of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sclerotinia sclerotiorum</Emphasis> with <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brassica napus</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">B. juncea</Emphasis> genotypes

Sclerotinia stem rot caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum is a serious threat to oilseed production in Australia. Eight isolates of S. sclerotiorum were collected from Mount Barker and Walkway regions of Western Australia in 2004. Comparisons of colony characteristics on potato dextrose agar (PDA) as well as pathogenicity studies of these isolates were conducted on selected genotypes of Brassica napus and B. juncea. Three darkly-pigmented isolates (WW-1, WW-2 and WW-4) were identified and this is the first report of the occurrence of such isolates in Australia. There was, however, no correlation between pigmentation or colony diameter on PDA with the pathogenicity of different isolates of this pathogen as measured by diameter of cotyledon lesion on the host genotypes. Significant differences were observed between different isolates (P ≤ 0.001) in two separate experiments in relation to pathogenicity. Differences were also observed between the different Brassica genotypes (P ≤ 0.001) in their responses to different isolates of S. sclerotiorum and there was also a significant host × pathogen interaction (P ≤ 0.001) in both experiments. Responses between the two experiments were significantly correlated in relation to diameter of cotyledon lesions caused by selected isolates (r = 0.79; P < 0.001, n = 48). Responses of some genotypes (e.g., cv. Charlton) were relatively consistent irrespective of the isolates of the pathogen tested, whereas highly variable responses were observed in some other genotypes (e.g., Zhongyou-ang No. 4, Purler) against the same isolates. Results indicate that, ideally, more than one S. sclerotiorum isolate should be included in any screening programme to identify host resistance. Unique genotypes which show relatively consistent resistant reactions (e.g., cv. Charlton) across different isolates are the best for commercial exploitation of this resistance in oilseed Brassica breeding programmes.     

Reaction of glucosinolate-myrosinase defence system in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brassica</Emphasis> plants to pathogenicity factor of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sclerotinia sclerotiorum</Emphasis>

The glucosinolate-myrosinase defence system, specific to Brassicales plants, produces toxic volatile compounds during mechanical injury or pathogen attack. The reaction of this system to oxalic acid, known as a pathogenicity factor of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, is not fully understood. The hydrolysis of glucosinolates was studied at varying conditions in the presence of oxalic acid in the substrate. In a bioassay, colonies of the pathogen were exposed to volatiles from hydrated mustard powder used as a myrosinase and glucosinolate source. The glucosinolate-myrosinase (GSL-M) system was activated in the presence of oxalic acid at a concentration and pH similar to that expected in vivo. Volatile production was inhibited only when the pH fell to 3 or below. It is unlikely that oxalic acid plays a significant role in disarming the GSL-M system during infection of Brassica hosts.     

Inheritance of resistance in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Solanum nigrum</Emphasis> to <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phytophthora infestans</Emphasis>

Solanum nigrum, black nightshade, is a wild non-tuber bearing hexaploid species with a high level of resistance to Phytophthora infestans (Colon et al. 1993), the causal agent of potato late blight, the most devastating disease in potato production. However, the genetic mode of resistance in S. nigrum is still poorly understood. In the present study, two S. nigrum accessions, 984750019 (N19) and #13, resistant (R) and susceptible (S), respectively, to three different isolates of P. infestans, were sexually crossed. The various kinds of progeny including F1, F2, F3, and backcross populations (BC₁; F1 × S), as well as two populations produced by self-pollinating the R parent and S parent, were each screened for susceptibility to P. infestans isolate MP 324 using detached leaf assays. Fifty seedling plant individuals of the F1 progeny were each resistant to this specific isolate, similarly to the seedling plants resulting from self-pollination of the resistant R parent. Thirty seedling plants obtained from self-pollination of the S parent were susceptible. Among a total of 180 F2 plants, the segregation ratio between resistant and susceptible plants was approximately 3: 1. Among the 66 seedling plants of the BC₁ progeny originating from crossing an F1 plant with the susceptible S parent, there were 26 susceptible and 40 resistant plants to P. infestans. The segregation patterns obtained indicated monogenic dominant inheritance of resistance to P. infestans isolate MP 324 in S. nigrum acc. 984750019. This gene, conferring resistance to P. infestans, may be useful for the transformation of potato cultivars susceptible to late blight.     

Structural conservation of the <Emphasis Type="Italic">hrp</Emphasis> gene cluster in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Xanthomons oryzae</Emphasis> pv. <Emphasis Type="Italic">oryzae</Emphasis>

The clustered hrp genes encoding the type III secretion system in the Japanese strains MAFF301237 and MAFF311018 of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae were sequenced and compared. The strains differ in their pathogenicity, location, and year of isolation. A 30-kbp sequence comprising 29 open reading frames (ORFs) was identical in its structural arrangement in both strains but differed from X. campestris pv. campestris, X. axonopodis pv. citri, and X. axonopodis pv. glycines in certain genes located between the hpaB-hrpF interspace region. The DNA sequence and the putative amino acid sequence in each ORF was also identical in both X. oryzae pv. oryzae strains as were the PIP boxes and the relative sequences. These facts clearly showed that the structure of the hrp gene cluster in X. oryzae pv. oryzae is unique.     

Induction of systemic resistance in banana (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Musa</Emphasis> spp.) against <Emphasis Type="Italic">Banana bunchy top virus</Emphasis> (BBTV) by combining chitin with root-colonizing <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pseudomonas fluorescens</Emphasis> strain CHA0

Pseudomonas fluorescens strains CHA0 and Pf1 were investigated for their biocontrol efficacy against Banana bunchy top virus (BBTV) in banana (Musa spp.) alone and in combination with chitin under glasshouse and field conditions. Bioformulation of P. fluorescens strain CHA0 with chitin was effective in reducing the banana bunchy top disease (BBTD) incidence in banana under glasshouse and field conditions. In addition to disease control, the bioformulation increased the economic yield significantly compared to the untreated control. Increased accumulation of oxidative enzymes, peroxidase (PO), polyphenol oxidase (PPO), phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins, chitinase, β-1,3-glucanase and phenolics were observed in CHA0 bioformulation amended with chitin-treated plants challenged with BBTV under glasshouse conditions. Indirect ELISA indicated the reduction in viral antigen concentration in P. fluorescens strain CHA0 with chitin-treated banana plants corresponding to reduced disease ratings. The present study revealed that induction of defence enzymes by P. fluorescens with chitin amendment reduced the BBTD incidence and increased bunch yield in banana.     

Potential inhibitors against <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sclerotinia sclerotiorum</Emphasis>, produced by the fungus <Emphasis Type="Italic">Myrothecium</Emphasis> sp. associated with the marine sponge <Emphasis Type="Italic">Axinella</Emphasis> sp.

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum is a worldwide ascomycete fungal plant pathogen, which causes enormous yield losses on major economic crops such as crucifers, grain legumes and several other plant families. The objective of this research was to isolate and characterise some bioactive products from cultures of fungi associated with the marine sponge Axinella sp. In total, nine fungal isolates were obtained from the marine sponge Axinella sp. collected from the South China Sea. A group of test strains, including two G⁺ strains (Bacillus subtilis and Staphylococcus aureus), two G⁻ strains (Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and three fungi including two plant pathogenic fungi Sclerotinia sclerotiorum and Magnaporthe grisea and Saccharomyces cerevisiae, were employed as the indicator organisms for bioactivity screening. Using antagonistic tests and bioactive screening of the ethyl acetate (EtOAc) extracts of the corresponding cultures, fungal isolate JS9 showed the stronger efficacy against the test indicator strains, especially the indicator fungal pathogens. Isolate JS9 was further identified as Myrothecium sp. by a combination of morphological features and 18S rDNA BLAST on GenBank. Two macrocyclic trichothecenes, roridin A (compound 1) and roridin D (compound 2) were purified by tracking the activity of the EtOAc extract fractions and characterised with spectral analyses including MS, ¹H-NMR, ¹³C-NMR and disortionless enhancement by polarization transfer (DEPT). In vitro antifungal tests showed that the two macrocyclic trichothecenes were bioactive against S. cerevisiae, M. grisea and S. sclerotiorum with minimal inhibitory concentrations of 31.25, 125 and 31.25 μg ml⁻¹ for roridin A, and 62.5, 250 and 31.25 μg ml⁻¹ for roridin D, respectively. The present investigation demonstrated that two antifungal trichothecenes including roridin A and roridin D produced by the fungus Myrothecium sp. isolated from the marine sponge Axinella sp. could be potential inhibitors against the plant pathogen S. sclerotiorum. Lian Wu Xie and Shu Mei Jiang contributed equally to this work.     

ABA signaling inhibits oxalate-induced production of reactive oxygen species and protects against <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sclerotinia sclerotiorum</Emphasis> in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Arabidopsis thaliana</Emphasis>

Oxalic acid is an essential virulence factor of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum that elicits wilting symptoms in infected host plants. Foliar wilting in response to oxalic acid is known to be dependent on an increase in stomatal conductance. To determine whether stomatal regulation controls susceptibility to S. sclerotiorum, abscisic acid-insensitive and open stomata mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana were analyzed. Whereas abscisic acid-insensitive mutants were hypersusceptible to S. sclerotiorum, open stomata mutants were as susceptible as wild type. It was concluded that stomatal regulation does not control susceptibility to S. sclerotiorum because open stomata mutants are known to only impair guard cells whereas abscisic acid-insensitive mutants also affect other cell types. Guard cell-independent processes also control sensitivity to oxalic acid because oxalic acid was more toxic to abscisic acid-insensitive mutants than to open stomata mutants. To explore a possible mechanism of toxicity, production of reactive oxygen species was measured in plant cells after exposure to oxalic acid. Oxalic acid was found to elicit reactive oxygen species production independently of abscisic acid. Nevertheless, cancellation of reactive oxygen species elicitation after co-stimulation of wild-type guard cells with oxalic acid and abscisic acid provided evidence for antagonistic interaction between both molecules.     

Generation and characterisation of Tn5-tagged <Emphasis Type="Italic">Xanthomonas oryzae</Emphasis> pv. <Emphasis Type="Italic">oryzae</Emphasis> mutants that overcome <Emphasis Type="Italic">Xa23</Emphasis>-mediated resistance to bacterial blight of rice

Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae causes bacterial blight of rice. Xa23, a bacterial blight resistance gene identified originally in wild rice, Oryza rufipogon, is dominant and resistant to all X. oryzae pv. oryzae field isolates tested. The corresponding avirulence gene avrXa23 is unknown. Here we report the generation of a random insertion mutant library of X. oryzae pv. oryzae strain PXO99 using a Tn5-derived transposon tagging system, and identification of mutant strains that are virulent on CBB23, a near-isogenic rice line containing Xa23. A total of 24,192 Tn5 inserted clones was screened on CBB23 by leaf-cutting inoculation and at least eight of them caused lesions on CBB23 comparable to those on JG30, the susceptible recurrent parent of CBB23. Polymerase chain reaction and Southern blot analysis showed that all the eight mutants, designated as P99M1, P99M2, P99M3, P99M4, P99M5, P99M6, P99M7 and P99M8, have a single Tn5-insertion in their genomes. The flanking DNA sequences of the Tn5-insertion sites were isolated by PCR-walking and sequenced. Bioinformatic analysis of the flanking sequences, by aligning them with the whole genome sequences of X. oryzae pv. oryzae strains PXO99, KACC10331 and MAFF311018 through NCBI, revealed that the Tn5-insertions disrupted genes that encode TAL effector AvrBs3/PthA, ISXo1 transposase, Type II secretion system protein-like protein or outer membrane protein, glycogen synthase, cytochrome C5 and conserved hypothetical protein. Further identification of these mutants will facilitate the molecular cloning of avirulence gene avrXa23. The authors C.-L. Wang, A.-B. Xu contributed equally to this work; Y. Gao and Y.-L. Fan contributed equally to this work.     

Anthracnose of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Polygonatum falcatum</Emphasis> caused by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Colletotrichum dematium</Emphasis>

Severe spotting, blight and drop of leaves caused by Colletotrichum dematium were found on potted plants of Polygonatum falcatum, a liliaceous ornamental, in open fields in Kagawa Prefecture, Japan, in May 2001. This new disease was named anthracnose of P. falcatum. Keisuke Tomioka, Jouji Moriwaki, Toyozo Sato contributed equally to this work. The fungal isolate and its nucleotide sequence data obtained in this study were deposited in Genebank, National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences and the DDBJ/EMBL/GenBank databases under accessions MAFF239500 and AB334523, respectively.     

Field evaluation for resistance to the black rot pathogen <Emphasis Type="Italic">Xanthomonas campestris</Emphasis> pv. <Emphasis Type="Italic">campestris</Emphasis> in cabbage (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Brassica oleracea</Emphasis>)

Black rot, caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris, (Xcc), is one of the most serious diseases of crucifers world-wide. Forty-nine genotypes were evaluated for resistance under field conditions in Tanzania after artificial inoculation with Xcc race 1. Open pollinated white cabbage cultivars were generally susceptible, while Portuguese and pointed cabbages exhibited partial resistance. Some F1 white cabbage cultivars were highly susceptible, whereas others exhibited a high level of partial resistance. The most promising of the hybrid cultivars were T-689 F1, Gianty F1, No. 9690 F1, N 66 F1, and SWR-02 F1. Breeding line Badger I-16 exhibited the highest level of resistance of all genotypes. The genotypes accounted for 72.9–75.5% of the variation of the disease severity when assessed on the leaves, and 71.4% of the variation when assessed as internal black rot in heads at harvest. High correlations (equal to or above 0.7) were found between disease severities assessed on leaves three times during the growing season and also with the amount of internal black rot in heads. Leaf loss also was correlated with disease severity. The high genetic determination of the trait and the high correlations between disease assessments indicate that selection for resistance to black rot will be efficient when field screenings are carried out. Evaluation of genotypes for disease severity on leaves during the growing season combined with evaluations of head resistance in the most promising genotypes may be a simple method to select resistant cultivars.     

Discrimination of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Xanthomonas campestris</Emphasis> pv. <Emphasis Type="Italic">campestris</Emphasis> races among strains from northwestern Spain by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Brassica</Emphasis> spp. genotypes and rep-PCR

Black rot, caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris (Xcc) is a severe seedborne disease of Brassica crops around the world. Nine races are recognized, being races 1 and 4 the most aggressive and widespread. The identification of Xcc races affecting Brassica crops in a target area is necessary to establish adequate control measures and breeding strategies. The objectives of this study were to isolate and identify Xcc strains from northwestern Spain by using semi-selective medium and pathogenicity tests, determine the existing races of Xcc in this area by differential series of Brassica spp., and evaluate the use of repetitive DNA polymerase chain reaction-based fingerprinting (rep-PCR) to differentiate among the nine existing Xcc races. Seventy five isolates recovered from infected fields were identified as Xcc. Race-typing tests determined the presence of the following seven pathogen races: 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9. Race 4 was the most frequent in Brassica oleracea and race 6 in Brassica rapa crops, therefore breeding should be focussed in obtaining resistant varieties to both races. Cluster analysis derived from the combined fingerprints showed four groups, but no clear relationship to race, crop or geographical origin was found. Rep-PCR analysis was found not to be a reliable method to discriminate among Xcc races, therefore race typing of Xcc isolates should be done by using the differential series of Brassica spp. genotypes or another alternative approach.     

Potato <Emphasis Type="Italic">R1</Emphasis> resistance gene confers resistance against <Emphasis Type="Italic">Phytophthora infestans</Emphasis> in transgenic tomato plants

Tomato is challenged by several pathogens which cause loss of production. One such pathogen is the oomycete Phytophthora infestans which is able to attack all the aerial parts of the plant. Although a wide range of resistance sources are available, genetic control of this disease is not yet successful. Pyramiding R-genes through genetic transformation could be a straightforward way to produce tomato and potato lines carrying durable resistance to P. infestans. In this work the R1 potato gene was transferred into tomato lines. The tomato transgenic lines were analyzed by using q-RT-PCR and progeny segregation to determine the gene copy number. To test the hypothesis that R1 represents a specifically regulated R-gene, transgenic tomato plants were inoculated with P. infestans isolate 88133 and IPO. All the plants containing the R1 gene were resistant to the late blight isolate IPO-0 and susceptible to isolate 88133. These results provide evidence for specific activation of the R1 gene during pathogen challenge. Furthermore, evidence for enhancement of PR-1 gene expression during P. infestans resistance response was obtained.     

Effect of Organic Management of Soils on Suppressiveness to <Emphasis Type="Italic">Gaeumannomyces graminis</Emphasis> var. <Emphasis Type="Italic">tritici</Emphasis> and its Antagonist, <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pseudomonas fluorescens</Emphasis>

Organic management of soils is generally considered to reduce the incidence and severity of plant diseases caused by soil-borne pathogens. In this study, take-all severity on roots of barley and wheat, caused by Gaeumannomyces graminis var. tritici, was significantly lower in organically-managed than in conventionally-managed soils. This effect was more pronounced on roots of barley and wheat plants grown in a sandy soil compared to a loamy organically-managed soil. Fluorescent Pseudomonas spp. and in particular phlD⁺ pseudomonads, key factors in the take-all decline phenomenon, were represented at lower population densities in organically-managed soils compared to conventionally-managed soils. Furthermore, organic management adversely affected the initial establishment of introduced phlD⁺ P. fluorescens strain Pf32-gfp, but not its survival. In spite of its equal survival rate in organically- and conventionally-managed soils, the efficacy of biocontrol of take-all disease by introduced strain Pf32-gfp was significantly stronger in conventionally-managed soils than in organically-managed soils. Collectively, these results suggest that phlD⁺ Pseudomonas spp. do not play a critical role in the take-all suppressiveness of the soils included in this study. Consequently, the role of more general mechanisms involved in take-all suppressiveness in the organically-managed soils was investigated. The higher microbial activity found in the organically-managed sandy soil combined with the significantly lower take-all severity suggest that microbial activity plays, at least in part, a role in the take-all suppressiveness in the organically-managed sandy soil. The significantly different bacterial composition, determined by DGGE analysis, in organically-managed sandy soils compared to the conventionally-managed sandy soils, point to a possible additional role of specific bacterial genera that limit the growth or activity of the take-all pathogen.     

Infection process of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Fusarium graminearum</Emphasis> in oats (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Avena sativa</Emphasis> L.)

Fusarium head blight in small grain cereals has emerged as a major problem in the Nordic countries. However, the impact of this disease in oats has been less investigated than in other cereals. For this reason we have studied the infection process (the optimal time of infection and infection pathways) of Fusarium graminearum in oats and its subsequent effects on kernel infection, deoxynivalenol (DON) content and germination capacity. In a field experiment the oat cultivar Morton was spray-inoculated at different developmental stages, and the highest kernel infection and DON content and lowest germination percentage were observed when inoculation took place at anthesis. Field grown oats affected by a natural Fusarium head blight epidemic and spray-inoculated field and greenhouse oats were used to study the infection pathway. Results showed that the fungus entered primarily through the floret apex into the floret cavity, where it could infect via the internal surfaces of the palea, lemma and caryopsis. Both visual symptoms and fungal infections started at the apical portions of the florets and progressed to the basal portions. Hyphae of F. graminearum grew more profusely on the anthers than on other floret parts during initial stages of infection. Disease development within the oat panicle was slow and is primarily by physical contact between adjoining florets, indicating that the long pedicels give Type II resistance in oats.     

Transmission and detection of toria [<Emphasis Type="Italic">Brassica rapa</Emphasis> L. subsp. <Emphasis Type="Italic">dichotoma</Emphasis> (Roxb.)] phyllody phytoplasma and identification of a potential vector

Phyllody disease associated with 16SrIX phytoplasma was observed in the range of 4.1–11% in 10 different lines of toria [Brassica rapa L. subsp. dichotoma (Roxb.)] in experimental fields of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi, India during 2008 and 2009. The toria phyllody (TP) phytoplasma was detected in all the symptomatic and 13.3% of asymptomatic toria plants by nested PCR. The phytoplasma was detected in midrib, flower part, siliquae, stem, and root of infected plants as well as seeds. TP was transmitted by grafting and by dodder to toria and nine other rapeseed/mustard species as confirmed by nested PCR. However, symptoms of phytoplasma infection were induced only in toria, yellow sarson [Brassica rapa L. subsp. trilocularis (Roxb.)], brown sarson [Brassica rapa L. subsp. sarson (Prain)], rapeseed (B. napus subsp. oleifera), and rocket or taramira (Eruca sativa) but not in mustard (B. juncea), black mustard (B. nigra), Ethiopian mustard (B. carinata), B. tournefortii and white mustard (Sinapis alba). Transmission of TP phytoplasma to periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus) was successful only through dodder, but no transmission to tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) or brinjal (Solanum melongena) was found. TP phytoplasma was detected in Laodelpax striatellus, an abundant planthopper in toria fields, which indicates that this planthopper may be a potential vector for TP phytoplasma.     

Potential of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Trichoderma</Emphasis> spp. and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Talaromyces flavus</Emphasis> for biological control of potato stem rot caused by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Sclerotinia sclerotiorum</Emphasis>

Sixteen isolates belonging to 11 species of Trichoderma (T. asperellum, T. ceramicum, T. andinensis, T. orientalis, T. atroviride, T. viridescens, T. brevicompactum, T. harzianum, T. virens, T. koningii and T. koningiopsis) were evaluated for biological control of potato (Solanum tuberosum) stem rot caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. In dual culture tests, all antagonists significantly reduced sclerotia formation, and were able to inhibit radial growth of the pathogen. Growth inhibition by production of volatile and non-volatile inhibitors was also measured in in vitro tests. In screening the most efficient species of Trichoderma, establishment of mycelium on sclerotia and sclerotia lysis were also considered as important biocontrol qualities. Excluding T. asperellum, T. brevicompactum, T. andinensis and T. harzianum, all tested Trichoderma species were able to lyse sclerotia. The sclerotia-destroying species of Trichoderma and one isolate of Talaromyces flavus were tested in greenhouse tests and during 2 years of field experimentation during the 2007 and 2008 cropping seasons. After one aerial application of spore suspension in greenhouse trials, T. koningii, T. virens, T. ceramicum and T. viridescens were the most effective bio-agents and reduced significantly disease severity, and the least biocontrol efficacy was observed in T. flavus. Under field conditions and after five soil and foliar applications of spore suspension, all tested antagonists reduced significantly disease incidence. T. viridescens followed by T. ceramicum showed the best results. T. flavus and T. orientalis were less effective than other tested antagonists in both field trials.     

Plectosporium blight of monkshood caused by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Plectosporium tabacinum</Emphasis>

Severe blight of potted seedlings of monkshood caused by Plectosporium tabacinum was found in glasshouses in Kagawa Prefecture in southwest Japan in May 2001. Root rot and browning of stem bases were followed by wilting and yellowing of leaves, then blighting of leaves, flower buds and stems. A fungus was isolated from diseased plants and confirmed to cause the disease. The new disease was named “Plectosporium blight of monkshood”.     

Pathogenicity,Morpho-Species and Mating Types of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Alternaria</Emphasis> spp. causing Alternaria blight in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pistacia</Emphasis> spp. in Turkey

Alternaria genus includes many plant pathogens on numerous hosts, causing leaf spots, rots and blights. Alternaria blight has been observed as one of the important fungal diseases of pistachio (Pistacia vera L.) as well as its wild relatives (P. terebinthus, P. lentiscus, P. khinjuk, P. atlantica, P. mutica) in Turkey. Alternaria species were sampled from Pistacia spp. hosts from different geographic regions in Turkey during field trips in late spring to early fall of 2013. Alternaria blight symptoms were observed mainly on fruits and rarely on leaves. Four hundred and twenty two of the isolates were morphologically defined as A. alternata, A. tenuissima, A. arborescens and also intermediate morpho-species between A. alternata/A. arborescens. Pathogenicity of the isolates was confirmed with host inoculations on detached fruits. Mating types of 270 isolates of Alternaria spp. from the collection were identified using a PCR-based mating type assay that amplifies either a MAT1-1 or a MAT1-2 fragment from the mating locus. Although a strongly clonal population structure was expected due to the putative asexual reproduction of these fungi, both idiomorphs were detected at equal frequencies at several different spatial scales. The distribution of mating types within each geographic region, within host species as well as in overall collection was not significantly different from 1:1. Amplified fragments of partial idiomorph sequences were obtained for representative isolates. Parsimony trees were depicted based on sequence data of mating type genes for these representative isolates as well as some other Alternaria species obtained by Genebank. Several point mutations presented a few clusters which are supported by high bootsrapped values. The Alternaria blight disease agents both from cultivated and wild hosts were pathogenic on pistachio which may cause difficulties to control the disease because of extensity of pathogen sources. Besides, equal mating type distribution of the pathogen at both geographic and host species levels suggests a potential for sexual reproduction of Alternaria spp. in Turkey.     

Characterization of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pectobacterium carotovorum</Emphasis> subsp. <Emphasis Type="Italic">carotovorum</Emphasis> causing soft-rot disease on <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pinellia ternata</Emphasis> in China

Pinellia ternata is a traditional Chinese herb which has been used in China for over 1,000 years. A soft-rot disease characterized by water-soaked lesions and soft-rot symptoms with a stinking odour was commonly observed in cultivated fields of this plant, and Pectobacterium-like bacteria were consistently isolated from the infected tissues. Two typical strains (SXR1 and ZJR1), isolated from Shanxi and Zhejiang, respectively, were identified. Pathogenicity tests revealed that these strains were virulent to P. ternata and induced the same symptoms as observed in the field. Characterization involving fatty acid profile, metabolic and physiological properties, 16S rDNA sequence and PCR-RFLP identified both isolates as P. carotovorum subsp. carotovorum (Pcc). The 16S rDNA of both isolates shared 97–99% sequence similarity with that of Pcc strains. The phylogenetic trees showed that both isolates were clustered in the group of Pcc and P. carotovorum subsp. odorifera and both PCR-RFLP profiles were consistent with the pattern E produced by the minority of Pcc strains. Thus, isolates SXR1 and ZJR1 were characterized as Pcc in spite of some differences. This is the first report that Pcc has been proven as a causal agent of soft-rot disease on P. ternata.     

Dravya,a product of seaweed extract (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Sargassum wightii</Emphasis>), induces resistance in cotton against<Emphasis Type="Italic">Xanthomonas campestris</Emphasis> pv.<Emphasis Type="Italic">malsvacearum</Emphasis>

Dravya, a commercially developed aqueous seaweed extract, was evaluated for its effect on the expression of symptoms of bacterial blight caused byXanthomonas campestris pv.malvacearum (E.F. Smith) Dye in cotton. Seed soaking with Dravya (1:500) followed by foliar spray thrice at intervals of 10 days (10, 20, 30 days after sowing) resulted in a reduction in blight incidence on plants by 66%, 70% and 74% as determined 40, 60 and 80 days, respectively, after sowing. Induction of systemic resistance was associated with increases in plant height, total number of bolls formed, boll weight, stem girth, chlorophyll content, total phenols and peroxidase activity, which intimates that Dravya could be used as an ecofriendly potential input in the integrated management of bacterial-blight of cotton.