Biological control of cereal seed-borne diseases by seed bacterization with greenhouse-selected bacteria

About 400 bacterial strains, isolated from roots of wild and cultivated plants, were screened for effects against diseases caused by Drechslera teres and/or Microdochium nivale in greenhouse tests and against common bunt caused by Tilletia caries in field tests. Four of the strains showed good biocontrol activity <70% disease reduction) against D. teres and T. caries both in screenings and field tests. One Pseudomonas isolate, MA 342, strongly and reliably suppressed both D. teres and T. caries in the field, while effects against M. nivale were weaker. The effects could not be enhanced by varying pre-application or seed application procedures. This isolate could be stored as a suspension in a refrigerator, frozen or applied to seeds for at least one month without loosing its disease controlling ability.     

Beschreibung des Feuerbrandbefalls am Institut für Obstzüchtung in Dresden-Pillnitz im Jahr 2003

The orchard of the Institute of Fruit Breeding of the German Federal Centre of Breeding Research on Cultivated Plants in Dresden-Pillnitz was highly affected by fire blight in 2003. Infected pomefruit trees were observed over a period of nearly 3 months. The first symptoms on pear trees were found on May 19th. The pathogen Erwinia amylovora was confirmed officially on May 26, and the last infected apple trees were detected the 11th of August. The infected trees had to be grubbed at the decision of the Phytopathological Authority. In total, 1164 apple and 478 pear trees were grubbed, including the entire pear collection of the gene bank. Of 35 wild species of pear, 49 accessions, eight accessions of six species each, showed infections. The apple collection of the gene bank included 33 wild species, with 365 accessions, and 845 cultivars and clones. Ten accessions of nine wild apple species and 81 cultivars/clones of these collections showed fire blight infection. The source of infection was the pear collection, and the distance from that source was important for the occurrence of infection. Field plots close to the pear collection had tree losses of 10–34%, while more distant plots had losses of 0–6%. Around 80% of the lost apple trees were detected and grubbed from 27th May to 11th June. Some of the cultivars bred in Dresden-Pillnitz, e.g. ‘Pilot’ and ‘Rekarda’, were affected by fire blight in most field plots, whereas most others were affected mainly only in plots adjacent to the infection source. A correlation of r=?0.72 could be calculated for rating in artificial shoot inoculations and percentage of trees of resistant cultivars lost. The cultivars ‘Pirol’, ‘Reanda’, ‘Remo’, ‘Rene’, ‘Renora’, ‘Resi’, and ‘Retina’ showed only a very low numbers of infected trees. No tree of ‘Rewena’ showed symptoms of fire blight. Despite a tendency to postblooming, only 8.9% of ‘Pinova’ trees had to be grubbed.     

Untersuchungen zur Übertragung von Clavibacter michiganensis ssp. sepedonicus auf gesunde Kartoffelknollen

Zusammenfassung In den Jahren 1999 bis 2003 wurde in Freiland-, Klimakammer- und Lagerungsversuchen überprüft, ob ein Risiko für die Übertragung des Erregers der Bakteriellen Ringfäule der Kartoffel (Clavibacter michiganensis ssp. sepedonicus) besteht, wenn (a) gesunde Kartoffelknollen in Kontakt mit Maschinen und Geräten kommen, die mit dem Erreger kontaminiert sind (indirekter Kontakt) und (b) gesunde Kartoffelknollen direkt in Kontakt mit infizierten Knollen kommen (direkter Kontakt). Nach indirektem Kontakt konnte nur beim nachfolgenden Anbau der kontaminierten Knollen in der Klimakammer Befall in Kraut und Knollen festgestellt werden. Im Freiland konnte der Erreger, auch bei wiederholtem Nachbau der geernteten Knollen, nicht nachgewiesen werden. Nach direktem Kontakt und nachfolgendem Anbau der kontaminierten Knollen in der Klimakammer und im Freiland, wurde der Erreger in allen Fällen in den geerntete Knollen nachgewiesen. Befall im Kraut wurde nur in dem Klimakammerversuch und in einem Freilandversuch ermittelt. Wurden durch direkten Kontakt kontaminierte Knollen eingelagert, konnte der Erreger in allen untersuchten Knollen festgestellt werden. Insgesamt besteht ein hohes Risiko, dass gesunde Knollen infiziert werden, wenn oberflächliche Kontaminationen mit dem Erreger erfolgen. Die Wahrscheinlichkeit von Infektionen steigt mit zunehmender Kontaminationsstärke.     

Adherence of Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae serotype 1 to swine buccal epithelial cells involves fibronectin

The swine pathogen Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae serotype 1 was investigated for its ability to adhere to swine, rat, and human buccal epithelial cells (BEC). The highest number of bacteria adhered was to swine BEC. This binding ability was affected by heating, extreme pH, treatment with sodium dodecyl sulfate, ethylenediamine tetraacetate, or periodate, and proteolysis, suggesting that cell-surface glycoproteins participate in adherence and that adherence is based mostly on ionic interactions. Mannose and swine fibronectin may play a direct role in this interaction. Convalescent-phase serum from naturally infected pigs inhibited the adhesion. There was a correlation between bacterial pathogenicity as well as host specificity and the capacity for adherence to swine BEC. Adhesion to swine BEC provides a convenient method to study in vitro the adherence of A. pleuropneumoniae and other pathogens of the pig respiratory tract.     

Überleben von Ralstonia solanacearum Biovar 2 (Rasse 3), dem Erreger der Schleimkrankheit der Kartoffel, in Boden und auf verschiedenen Materialien (Mikrokosmos)

Microcosm studies were carried out to test the survival of Ralstonia solanacearum biovar 2 (race 3) in soil at the permanent wilting point (wp) water content and at field capacity (fc) water content and on various material. Soils were placed at permanent ?5°C, 4°C, 15°C and 20°C and weekly fluctuating ?10/0/+10°C and the material at 5, 15 °C, 20°C with relative humidity (rh) uncontrolled or at constant 10% or 90%. In soil, survival was clearly dependent on temperature independent of water content. At 20°C Ralstonia solanacearum could be reisolated up to 364 days, at 15°C up to 290 days, at 4°C up to 209 days and at fluctuating temperatures (?10/0/+10°C) only up to 18 days. The lower the temperature, the more the population declined. At 15°C and 20°C appr. 10⁷ cfu/g soil were detected after 100 days, whereas at ?5°C only 10² cfu/g soil were detected after only 18 days. The pathogen was longer detectable in sandy-clay loam than in lighter sandy soil. It could be longer reisolated at wilting point and the populations did not decline as rapidly as at field capacity. Ralstonia solanacearum could best survive on material surfaces like rubber, plastic and varnished metal with maximum survival of 40 days at 5°C and 10% rh. In general there is a low risk of Ralstonia solanacearum overwintering under European climatic conditions when the fields are cleared of plant debris and the soil is frozen. Contamined material surfaces pose the risk of pathogen transmission to healthy tubers.     

Effectiveness of plant extracts of Paeonia suffruticosa and Hedera helix against diseases caused by Phytophthora infestans in tomato and Pseudoperonospora cubensis in cucumber

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - The effects of ethanolic extracts (20 % per fresh weight (Fw) or 6 % per dry weight) of 20 different plant species were tested against late blight...     

Distribution of alpha‐neoendorphin,ACTH (18–39) and beta‐endorphin (1–27) in the alpaca brainstem

Using an immunocytochemical technique, we have studied in the alpaca brainstem the distribution of immunoreactive structures containing prodynorphin (alpha‐neoendorphin)‐ and pro‐opiomelanocortin (adrenocorticotrophin hormone (18–39) (ACTH), beta‐endorphin (1–27))‐derived peptides. No peptidergic‐immunoreactive cell body was observed. Immunoreactive fibres were widely distributed, although in most of the brainstem nuclei the density of the peptidergic fibres was low or very low. In general, the distribution of the immunoreactive fibres containing the peptides studied was very similar. A close anatomical relationship occurred among the fibres containing alpha‐neoendorphin, ACTH or beta‐endorphin (1–27), suggesting a functional interaction among the three peptides in many of the brainstem nuclei. The number of fibres belonging to the prodynorphin system was higher than that of the pro‐opiomelanocortin system. A moderate/low density of immunoreactive fibres was observed in 65.11% (for alpha‐neoendorphin (1–27)), 18.18% (for ACTH) and 13.95% (for beta‐endorphin) of the brainstem nuclei/tracts. In the alpaca brainstem, a high density of immunoreactive fibres was not observed. The neuroanatomical distribution of the immunoreactive fibres suggests that the peptides studied are involved in auditory, motor, gastric, feeding, vigilance, stress, respiratory and cardiovascular mechanisms, taste response, sleep‐waking cycle and the control of pain transmission.