First Report of Powdery Mildew Caused by Podosphaera xanthii (syn. P. fusca) on Cocklebur in Korea

Cocklebur (Xanthium strumarium L., Asteraceae) is an annual broadleaf weed native to the Americas and eastern Asia. The plant is known as one of the worst competitive weeds in soybean fields and also is known to have some phytopharmacological or toxicological properties. In October 2011, a powdery mildew disease was observed on cocklebur growing in a natural landscape at Geomun Oreum located in Jeju Island, South Korea. Initial signs appeared as thin white colonies, which subsequently developed abundant growth on adaxial leaf surfaces. As the disease progressed, brown discoloration extended down infected leaves which withered. Conidia were formed singly and terminally on conidiophores. Primary conidia (20.3 to 28.6 [average 25.1] μm long × 11.1 to 15.2 [14.3] μm wide, n = 30) were ellipsoid with a round apex and truncate base. Conidiophores were straight or slightly curved and 60.1 to 101.7 (97.3) μm long × 8.2 to 13.2 (11.3) μm wide. Chasmothecia were not observed. No fibrosin bodies were observed in the conidia. Morphological characteristics were consistent with descriptions of Podosphaera xanthii (syn. P. fusca) (2,4). To confirm the identity of the causal fungus, the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region inclusive of 5.8S and 28S rDNA was amplified from white patches consisting of mycelia and conidia on one leaf using ITS1 (5′-TCCGTAGGTGAACCTGCGG-3′) and LR5F (5′-GCTATCCTGAGGGAAAC-3′), and LROR (5′-ACCCGCTGAACTTAAGC-3′) and LR5F primer sets, respectively. The resulting sequences were deposited in GenBank (Accession Nos. JX502022 and JX964999). A NCBI BLASTn search revealed that the rDNA ITS (JX502022) and 28S (JX964999) homologies of isolate EML-XSPW1 represented 99.6% (512/514) and 100% (803/803) identity values with those of P. xanthii (AB040330 and AB462792, respectively). The rDNA ITS and 28S sequence analysis revealed that the causal fungus clustered with P. xanthii (syn. P. fusca), falling into the Xanthii/Fusca phylogenetic group (2,4). Pathogenicity was confirmed through inoculations made by gently pressing infected leaves onto mature leaves of healthy cocklebur plants in the field in August. The six inoculated leaves were sealed in sterilized vinyl bags to maintain humid conditions for 2 days. Seven days after inoculation, symptoms similar to those observed under natural infection were observed on the inoculated plant leaves. No symptoms developed on the uninoculated control plants. A fungal pathogen that was morphologically identical to the fungus originally observed on diseased plants was also observed on inoculated plants. Erysiphe cichoracearum, E. communis, Oidium asteris-punicei, O. xanthimi, P. xanthii, and P. fuliginea have all been reported to cause powdery mildew on cocklebur (1). P. xanthii was first reported on X. strumarium in Russia (3). To our knowledge, this is the first report of powdery mildew on cocklebur caused by P. xanthii in Korea. The powdery mildew pathogen may represent an option for biocontrol of the noxious weed in the near future. References: (1) D. F. Farr and A. Y. Rossman. Fungal Databases, Systematic Mycology and Microbiology Laboratory, ARS, USDA. Retrieved from http://nt.ars-grin.gov/fungaldatabases , December 11, 2012. (2) H. B. Lee. J. Microbiol. 51:1075, 2012. (3) V. A. Rusanov and T. S. Bulgakov. Mikol. Fitopatol. 42:314, 2008. (4) S. Takamatsu et al. Persoonia 24:38, 2010.

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First Report of Powdery Mildew Caused by Erysiphe diffusa, Oidium neolycopersici, and Podosphaera xanthii on Papaya in Taiwan

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-05-11-0362 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 95 (9) ◽

pp. 1188-1188 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

J.-G. Tsay ◽

R.-S. Chen ◽

H.-L. Wang ◽

W.-L. Wang ◽

B.-C. Weng

Keyword(s):

Powdery Mildew ◽

Morphological Characteristics ◽

Its Region ◽

Podosphaera Xanthii ◽

Oidium Neolycopersici ◽

First Report ◽

Plastic Bags ◽

The World ◽

Golovinomyces Cichoracearum ◽

Powdery Mildew Fungi

Powdery mildew can be found in most papaya (Carica papaya L.) fields during the winter and spring seasons in Taiwan. It usually causes severe yellowing of the leaf lamina and petiole and serious defoliation. Three types of powdery mildew fungi were isolated from papaya leaves in Chiayi City (23.28°N, 120.28°E) at the beginning of 2008. Conidia of the first one were single, globose, hyaline, and 24 to 36 × 14 to 18 μm (average 30.2 × 15.6 μm) without fibrosin bodies and with straight or occasionally flexuous conidiophores at the base. The second one had short pseudo-chains of two to four conidia which were ellipsoidal to ovoid, hyaline, and 24 to 40 × 12 to 16 μm (average 29.7 × 13.4 μm) without fibrosin bodies. The third type had chains of ellipsoidal conidia that were hyaline, 24 to 28 × 12 to 16 μm (average 26.3 × 14.4 μm) and contained fibrosin bodies. To confirm the identity of the three fungi, the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of rDNA was amplified using the primer pairs G1 (5′-TCC GTA GGT GAA CCT GCG GAA GGA T-3′)/Ed2 (5′-CGC GTA GAG CCC ACG TCG GA-3′), G1 (5′-TCC GTA GGT GAA CCT GCG GAA GGA T-3′)/On2 (5′-TGT GAT CCA TGT GAC TGG AA-3′), and S1 (5′-GGA TCA TTA CTG AGC GCG AGG CCC CG-3′)/S2 (5′-CGC CGC CCT GGC GCG AGA TAC A-3′). The alignment of obtained sequences (GenBank Accession Nos. GU358452, 507 bp; GU358451, 580 bp; and GU358450, 455 bp) showed a sequence identity of 100, 99, and 99% with the ITS sequences of Erysiphe diffusa, Oidium neolycopersici, and Podosphaera xanthii (GenBank Accession Nos. FJ378880, EU909694, and GQ927254), respectively. On the basis of morphological characteristics and ITS sequence similarities, these fungi were identified as E. diffusa (Cooke & Peck) U. Braun & S. Takam., O. neolycopersici L. Kiss, and P. xanthii (Castagne) U. Braun & S. Takam., respectively (1,3). Single colonies on papaya leaves infected with powdery mildew were identified in the laboratory and maintained on papaya leaves as inoculum. Pathogenicity was confirmed through inoculations by gently pressing a single colony of each fungus onto leaves of healthy papaya seedlings (cv. Horng-Fe). Five seedlings were inoculated for each fungus and then covered with plastic bags for 2 days. Five noninoculated seedlings served as control. After inoculation, treated plants were maintained separately from the control in different rooms of a greenhouse at 25°C under natural daylight conditions. Seven days after inoculation, typical symptoms of powdery mildew were observed on inoculated plants, but not on noninoculated plants. The same species from diseased lesions following artificial inoculation with each fungus were identified with light microscopy. Papaya was previously described as a host to O. caricae Noack in many tropical and subtropical areas of the world including Taiwan (2). However E. cruciferarum, Golovinomyces cichoracearum, Oidiopsis sicula, O. caricae, O. caricae-papayae, O. caricicola, O. indicum, O. papayae, Ovulariopsis papayae, P. caricae-papayae, P. macularis, P. xanthii, and Streptopodium caricae were reported to infect papaya (4). To our knowledge, this is the first report of papaya powdery mildew caused by E. diffusa and O. neolycopersici in the world and the first report of the three fungi found on papaya in Taiwan. References: (1) U. Braun and S. Takamatsu. Schlechtendalia 4:1, 2000. (2) H. S. Chien and H. L. Wang. J. Agric. Res. China 33:320, 1984. (3) L. Kiss et al. Mycol. Res. 105:684, 2001. (4) J. R. Liberato et al. Mycol. Res. 108:1185, 2004.

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First Report of Powdery Mildew on Spanish Needles (Bidens bipinnata) Caused by Podosphaera xanthii in Korea

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-10-12-0966-pdn ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 97 (10) ◽

pp. 1385-1385

Author(s):

H. B. Lee ◽

C. J. Kim ◽

H. Y. Mun

Keyword(s):

Powdery Mildew ◽

Its Region ◽

Broad Host Range ◽

Pathogenicity Test ◽

Podosphaera Xanthii ◽

Tropical Regions ◽

First Report ◽

Rdna Its ◽

Humid Condition ◽

Primer Sets

Spanish needles (Bidens bipinnata L.) is an annual herb that belongs to a genus of flowering plants in family Asteraceae native to United States, and tropical regions around world. The plant produces important flavonoid compounds quercitin and hyperoside that function as anti-allergens, anti-inflammatories, anti-microbials, and anti-cancer agents. Between July and October 2011 and 2012, white superficial mycelia were observed initially on leaf and stem portions, but later progressed to the flower head. Surveys showed that the disease was widespread in Gwangju and most areas of South Korea. Abundant, necrotic, dark brown spots showing chasmothecia were frequently observed in October and were abundant on the adaxial surface of leaves. Chasmothecia were blackish brown to yellow without typical appendages. They ranged from 51.2 to 71.1 (mean 66.8) μm in diameter. Conidia were formed singly and the primary conidia were ellipsoid, rounded at the apex, truncated base, and ranged from 25.4 to 33.2 (mean 27.3) μm long × 10.2 to 12.2 (mean 11.3) μm wide. Conidiophores were erect, 60.1 to 101.3 (mean 98.3) μm long × 6.2 to 9.2 (mean 7.3) μm wide. From extracted genomic DNA, the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region inclusive of 5.8S and 28S rDNA was amplified with ITS1F (5′-TCCGTAGGTGAACCTGCGG-3′) and LR5F (5′-GCTATCCTGAGGGAAAC-3′), and LROR (5′-ACCCGCTGAACTTAAGC-3′) and LR5F primer sets, respectively. rDNA ITS (GenBank Accession No. JX512555) and 28S (JX512556) homologies of the fungus (EML-BBPW1) represented 99.6% (532/534) and 100% (661/661) identity values with Podosphaera xanthii (syn. P. fusca) AB040349 and P. xanthii (syn. P. fusca) AB462798, respectively. The rDNA sequence analysis revealed that the causal fungus matched P. xanthii (syn. P. fusca), forming a xanthii/fusca group (3,4). A pathogenicity test was performed on three plants in a greenhouse. The treated leaves were sealed in vinyl pack in humid condition for 2 days. Seven days after inoculation, similar symptoms were observed on the inoculated Spanish needles plant leaves. No symptoms were observed on control plants treated with distilled water. Koch's postulates were fulfilled by re-observing the fungal pathogen on the inoculated leaves. Podosphaera (syn. Sphaerotheca) xanthii (or fusca) has been known as an ubiquitous species with a broad host range. So far, five records regarding P. xanthii (=P. fusca) have been found in plants of genus Bidens. P. xanthii has been reported to occur on B. cernua in Belarus and Switzerland. In addition, the powdery mildew species was reported to occur on B. frondosa and B. tripartita in Korea, Russia, and Switzerland (2). To our knowledge, this is the first report of powdery mildew caused by P. xanthii on Spanish needles (B. bipinnata) in Korea. References: (1) U. Braun et al. Schlechtendalia 10:91, 2003. (2) D. F. Farr and A. Y. Rossman. Fungal Databases, Systematic Mycology and Microbiology Laboratory, ARS, USDA. Retrieved from http://nt.ars-grin.gov/fungaldatabases/ , 2012. (3) H. B. Lee. J. Microbiol. 51:1075, 2012. (4) S. Takamatsu, et al. Persoonia 24:38, 2010.

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First Report of Podosphaera xanthii Causing Powdery Mildew on Mungbean (Vigna radiata) in Taiwan

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-09-20-2092-pdn ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Zong-ming Sheu ◽

Ming-hsueh Chiu ◽

Lawrence Kenyon

Keyword(s):

Powdery Mildew ◽

Vigna Radiata ◽

Morphological Characteristics ◽

Resistance Breeding ◽

Its Region ◽

Infected Leaf ◽

Pathogenicity Test ◽

Causal Organism ◽

First Report ◽

Powdery Mildew Pathogen

Mungbean (Vigna radiata L.) is routinely grown in the experimental fields at the headquarters of the World Vegetable Center (23°6'30.88"N, 120°17'51.31"E) for breeding, research and germplasm multiplication. In a spring 2016 mungbean trial, about 50% of the plants were affected with powdery mildew. The white, powdery-like patches first appeared on the upper leaf surfaces, and soon developed to grey patches on both sides of the leaves. Purple to brown discoloration appeared on the underside of the infected leaf. Microscopy examination revealed that the causal organism was not Erysiphe polygoni, which had previously been documented as the powdery mildew pathogen on mungbean in Taiwan (Hartman et al. 1993). The fungus produced typical structures of the powdery mildew Euoidium, anamorph of the genus Podosphaera. The mycelium consisted of septate, flexuous hyphae with indistinct appressoria. The erect conidiophores arising from superficial hyphae varied from straight or slightly curved to curled. Three to ten conidia were borne in long chains with crenate edges. Foot-cells were straight, cylindrical and measured 30 to 52 µm long. Conidia were hyaline, ellipsoid-ovoid to barrel-shaped, with fibrosin bodies, and measured 27 to 33 (mean = 30.4) × 15 to 20 (mean = 16.6) µm. Germ tubes were clavate and occasionally forked, and were produced from the lateral sites of the conidia. No chasmothecia were found in the samples. The morphological characteristics were consistent with P. xanthii (Castagne) U. Braun & Shishkoff (Braun & Cook 2012). To confirm the identity, the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of rDNA and partialβ-tubulin gene (TUB2) for the isolate MG3 were amplified with the primers ITS4/ITS5 (White et al. 1990) and BtuF5/BtuR7a (Ellingham et al. 2019), respectively. BLASTn analysis revealed the ITS sequence (MN833717) was 100% identical to many records of P. xanthii whereas the TUB2 sequence (MW363957) was 100% identical to a record of P. fusca (syn. P. xanthii; KC333362) in NCBI GenBank. A pathogenicity test was conducted by dusting conidia from an infected leaf onto six healthy four-week-old mungbean plants (cv ‘Tainan No. 3’). Another three plants were not inoculated and were used as control. All the plants were maintained in a greenhouse at 25 to 28°C. All inoculated plants developed powdery mildew symptoms after 10 days, whereas the control plants remained symptomless. To our knowledge, this is the first report of P. xanthii causing disease on mungbean in Taiwan. P. xanthii also has been reported on mungbean in Thailand (Meeboon et al. 2016), while other records referring to E. polygoni infecting Vigna spp. are from Brazil and Fiji (Farr & Rossman 2020). Although both P. xanthii and E. polygoni have now been reported as causing powdery mildew on mungbean in Taiwan, which species predominates or is more important remains unclear. A comprehensive survey with accurate species identification is required to develop effective management of the disease, particularly for resistance breeding.

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First Report of Powdery Mildew Caused by Podosphaera xanthii on Papaya in Korea

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-06-13-0581-pdn ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 97 (11) ◽

pp. 1514-1514 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

J. H. Joa ◽

B. N. Chung ◽

K. S. Han ◽

S. E. Cho ◽

H. D. Shin

Keyword(s):

Powdery Mildew ◽

Agricultural Research ◽

Morphological Characteristics ◽

Its Region ◽

Width Ratio ◽

Korean Isolate ◽

Podosphaera Xanthii ◽

First Report ◽

Powdery Mildews ◽

Basal Septum

In March 2013, papaya (Carica papaya L. cv. Sunrise) plants growing in polyethylene-film-covered greenhouses in Agricultural Research Center for Climate Change located in Jeju City, Korea, were observed severely affected by a powdery mildew. Symptoms appeared as circular to irregular white patches on both sides of the leaves. As the disease progressed, the plants were covered with dense masses of the spores, eventually causing senescence and withering of leaves. Voucher specimens were deposited in the Korea University Herbarium (KUS). Hyphae were flexuous to straight, branched, septate, and 5 to 8 μm wide. Conidiophores were 110 to 250 × 10 to 12.5 μm and produced 2 to 5 immature conidia in chains with a crenate outline followed by 2 to 3 cells. Foot-cells of conidiophores were straight, cylindric, slightly constricted at the basal septum, and 55 to 110 μm long. Conidia were hyaline, ellipsoid-ovoid, measured 22 to 38 × 18 to 21 μm with a length/width ratio of 1.2 to 1.8, and had distinct fibrosin bodies. Chasmothecia were scattered or partly clustered, dark brown, spherical, 80 to 100 μm in diameter, and each contained a single ascus. Appendages were mycelioid, 1- to 5-septate, brown at the base and becoming paler. Asci were sessile, 72 to 87 × 52 to 68 μm, had a terminal oculus of 17 to 23 μm wide, and contained 8 ascospores, each 17 to 23 × 12.5 to 15 μm. The morphological characteristics and measurements were consistent with those of Podosphaera xanthii (Castagne) U. Braun & Shishkoff (1). To confirm the identification, the complete internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of rDNA of KUS-F27269 was amplified with the primers ITS5/P3 and sequenced (3). The resulting 443 bp sequence was deposited in GenBank (Accession No. KF111806). The Korean isolate showed >99% similarity with those of many P. xanthii isolates including an isolate on papaya from Taiwan (GU358450). Pathogenicity was confirmed through inoculation tests by gently pressing a diseased leaf onto young leaves of three asymptomatic, potted seedlings (cv. Sunrise). Three non-inoculated seedlings were used as control. Inoculated plants were isolated from non-inoculated plants in separate rooms in a greenhouse at 26 to 30°C. Inoculated leaves developed symptoms after 7 days, whereas the control plants remained symptomless. The fungus present on the inoculated leaves was identical morphologically to that observed on the original diseased leaves, fulfilling Koch's postulates. Powdery mildews of papaya caused by Podosphaera species including P. caricae-papayae have been reported in North America, South America, Hawaii, Africa, Ukraine, Australia, New Zealand, the Cook Islands, India, Thailand, Taiwan, and Japan (2,4). P. caricae-papayae is currently reduced to synonymy with P. xanthii (1). To our knowledge, this is the first report of powdery mildew caused by P. xanthii on papaya in Korea. Though papaya is a minor crop in Korea, producing about 300 M/T annually in greenhouses, powdery mildew disease is a threat to safe production of the fruits. References: (1) U. Braun and R. T. A. Cook. Taxonomic Manual of the Erysiphales (Powdery Mildews), CBS Biodiversity Series No. 11, CBS, Utrecht, 2012. (2) D. F. Farr and A. Y. Rossman. Fungal Databases. Syst. Mycol. Microbiol. Lab., Online publication, ARS, USDA, retrieved April 9, 2013. (3) S. Takamatsu et al. Mycol. Res. 113:117, 2009. (4) J. G. Tsay et al. Plant Dis. 95:1188, 2011.

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First report of Podosphaera xanthii causing powdery mildew on Xanthium strumarium in India

Journal of Plant Pathology ◽

10.1007/s42161-018-0019-9 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 100 (1) ◽

pp. 129-129

Author(s):

Sachin Vasantrao Thite ◽

Basavaraj A. Kore ◽

Moisés Camacho-Tapia ◽

Juan Manuel Tovar-Pedraza

Keyword(s):

Powdery Mildew ◽

Xanthium Strumarium ◽

Podosphaera Xanthii ◽

First Report

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First Report of Powdery Mildew Caused by Podosphaera xanthii on Cucurbita argyrosperma in Mexico

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-11-21-2458-pdn ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

José Francisco Díaz-Nájera ◽

Sergio Ayvar-Serna ◽

Antonio Mena-Bahena ◽

Guadalupe Arlene Mora-Romero ◽

Karla Yeriana Leyva-Madrigal ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Powdery Mildew ◽

Microscopic Examination ◽

Disease Incidence ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Its Region ◽

Likelihood Method ◽

28S Rrna ◽

Podosphaera Xanthii ◽

Voucher Specimen ◽

First Report

Cucurbita argyrosperma, commonly named as winter or cushaw squash, is highly sought for its seeds, which have important uses in culinary arts. During the autumn 2021, powdery mildew-like signs and symptoms were observed on cushaw squash in several commercial fields located in Cocula, Guerrero, Mexico. Signs were initially appeared as whitish powdery patches on both sides of leaves and then covering entire leaves and causing premature senescence. The disease incidence was estimated to be 80% in about 1000 plants in two fields. The mycelium was amphigenous, persistent, white in color, and occurred in dense patches. A voucher specimen was deposited in the Herbarium of the Colegio Superior Agropecuario del Estado de Guerrero under the accession number CSAEG22. For the morphological characterization by light microscopy, fungal structures were mounted in a drop of lactic acid on a glass slide. Microscopic examination showed nipple-shaped hyphal appressoria. Conidiophores (n = 30) were straight, 100 to 190 × 10 to 12 μm and produced 2 to 6 conidia in chains. Foot-cells were cylindrical, 41 to 78 μm long, followed by 1 to 2 shorter cells. Conidia (n = 100) were ellipsoid-ovoid to barrel-shaped, 29.5 to 39.1 × 19.4 to 22.7 μm, and contained conspicuous fibrosin bodies. Germ tubes were produced from a lateral position on conidia. Chasmothecia were not observed during the growing season. The morphological characters were consistent with those of the anamorphic state of Podosphaera xanthii (Braun and Cook 2012). For further confirmation, total DNA was extracted from conidia and mycelia following the CTAB method (Doyle and Doyle 1990), and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and part of the 28S gene were amplified by PCR, and sequenced. The ITS region of rDNA was amplified using the primers ITS5/ITS4 (White et al. 1990). For amplification of the 28S rRNA partial gene, a nested PCR was performed using the primer sets PM3 (Takamatsu and Kano 2001)/TW14 (Mori et al. 2000) and NL1/TW14 (Mori et al. 2000) for the first and second reactions, respectively. Phylogenetic analyses using the Maximum Likelihood method, including ITS and 28S sequences of isolates of Podosphaera spp. were performed and confirmed the results obtained in the morphological analysis. The isolate CSAEG22 grouped in a clade with isolates of Podosphaera xanthii. The ITS and 28S sequences were deposited in GenBank under accession numbers OL423329 and OL423343, respectively. Pathogenicity was confirmed by gently dusting conidia from infected leaves onto ten leaves of healthy C. argyrosperma plants. Five non-inoculated leaves served as controls. The plants were maintained in a greenhouse at 25 to 35 ºC, and relative humidity of 60 to 70%. All inoculated leaves developed similar signs to the original observation after 10 days, whereas control leaves remained symptomless. Microscopic examination of the fungus on inoculated leaves showed that it was morphologically identical to that originally observed on diseased plants, fulfilling Koch’s postulates. Podosphaera xanthii has been previously reported on C. maxima, C. moschata, and C. pepo in Mexico (Yañez-Morales et al. 2009; Farr and Rossman 2021). To our knowledge, this is the first report of P. xanthii causing powdery mildew on C. argyrosperma in Mexico. This pathogen is a serious threat to C. argyrosperma production in Mexico and disease management strategies should be developed.

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First Report of Powdery Mildew Caused by Podosphaera xanthii on Calendula officinalis in Italy

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-92-1-0174c ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 92 (1) ◽

pp. 174-174 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

A. Garibaldi ◽

G. Gilardi ◽

M. L. Gullino

Keyword(s):

Powdery Mildew ◽

Its Region ◽

Pathogenicity Test ◽

Podosphaera Xanthii ◽

Calendula Officinalis ◽

First Report ◽

Potted Plants ◽

Blastn Analysis ◽

Voucher Specimens ◽

Pot Marigold

Calendula officinalis L. (Asteraceae) (pot marigold or English marigold) is an ornamental species grown in gardens and as potted plants for the production of cut flower. It was also used in ancient Greek, Roman, Arabic, and Indian cultures as a medicinal herb as well as a dye for fabrics, foods, and cosmetics. During the summer of 2007, severe outbreaks of a previously unknown powdery mildew were observed on plants in several gardens near Biella (northern Italy). Both surfaces of leaves of infected plants were covered with dense, white mycelia and conidia. As the disease progressed, infected leaves turned yellow and died. Mycelia and conidia also were observed on stems and flower calyxes. Conidia were hyaline, ellipsoid, born in short chains (four to six conidia per chain), and measured 27.0 to 32.1 (31.4) × 12.9 to 18.4 (18.2) μm. Conidiophores measured 49 to 77.3 (67.2) × 8 to 13.3 (10.8) μm and showed a foot cell measuring 44 to 59 (51.9) × 9.3 to 12.6 (11.3) μm followed by one shorter cell measuring 15.6 to 18.9 (17.6) × 10.4 to 13.6 (12.2) μm. Fibrosin bodies were present. Chasmothecia were spherical, amber colored, with a diameter of 89 to 100 (94.5) μm. Each chasmothecium contained one ascus with eight ascospores. On the basis of its morphology, the causal agent was determined to be a Podosphaera sp. (2). The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of rDNA was amplified using the primers ITS4/ITS6 and sequenced. BLASTn analysis (1) of the 588 bp showed a 100% homology with the sequence of Podosphaera xanthii (2). The nucleotide sequence has been assigned GenBank Accession No. EU100973. Pathogenicity was confirmed through inoculations by gently pressing diseased leaves onto leaves of healthy C. officinalis plants. Five plants were inoculated. Five noninoculated plants served as control. Plants were maintained in a greenhouse at temperatures ranging from 20 to 26°C. Eleven days after inoculation, typical symptoms of powdery mildew developed on inoculated plants. Noninoculated plants did not show symptoms. The pathogenicity test was carried out twice. To our knowledge, this is the first report of powdery mildew on C. officinalis in Italy. C. officinalis was previously described as a host to Sphaerotheca fuliginea (synonym S. fusca) in Great Britain (4) as well as in Romania (3). Voucher specimens are available at the AGROINNOVA Collection, University of Torino. References: (1) S. F. Altschul et al. Nucleic Acids Res. 25:3389, 1997. (2) U. Braun and S. Takamatsu. Schlechtendalia 4:1, 2000. (3) E. Eliade. Rev. Appl. Mycol. 39:710, 1960. (4) F. J. Moore. Rev. Appl. Mycol. 32:380, 1953.

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First Report of Powdery Mildew Caused by Oidium hortensiae on Mophead Hydrangea in Korea

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-03-12-0300-pdn ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 96 (7) ◽

pp. 1072-1072 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

M. J. Park ◽

S. E. Cho ◽

J. H. Park ◽

S. K. Lee ◽

H. D. Shin

Keyword(s):

Powdery Mildew ◽

Sequence Data ◽

Morphological Characteristics ◽

Signs And Symptoms ◽

Its Region ◽

Polyethylene Film ◽

Width Ratio ◽

First Report ◽

Close Phylogenetic Relationship ◽

Powdery Mildew Disease

Hydrangea macrophylla (Thunb.) Ser., known as mophead hydrangea, is native to Japan and is used as a potted ornamental or is planted for landscaping in gardens worldwide. In May 2011, powdery mildew occurred on potted mophead hydrangea cv. Emerald plants in polyethylene-film-covered greenhouses in Icheon, Korea. Heavily infected plantings were unmarketable, mainly due to purplish red discoloration and crinkling of leaves. Such powdery mildew symptoms on mophead hydrangea in gardens had been often found in Korea since 2001, and the collections (n = 10) were deposited in the Korea University herbarium (KUS). In all cases, there was no trace of chasmothecia formation. Mycelium was effuse on both sides of leaves, young stems, and flower petals. Appressoria were well developed, lobed, and solitary or in opposite pairs. Conidiophores were cylindrical, 70 to 145 × 7.5 to 10 μm, and composed of three to four cells. Foot-cells of conidiophores were straight to sub-straight, cylindric, short, and mostly less than 30 μm long. Conidia produced singly were ellipsoid to oval, 32 to 50 × 14 to 22 μm with a length/width ratio of 1.7 to 2.8, lacked fibrosin bodies, and showed angular/rectangular wrinkling of outer walls. Germ tubes were produced on the perihilar position of conidia. Primary conidia were apically conical, basally rounded to subtruncate, 32 to 42 × 14 to 18 μm, and thus generally smaller than the secondary conidia. The morphological characteristics are consistent with previous descriptions of Oidium hortensiae Jørst. (3,4). To confirm the identification, the complete internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of rDNA from KUS-F25514 was amplified with primers ITS5 and P3 and directly sequenced. The resulting sequence of 694 bp was deposited in GenBank (Accession No. JQ669944). There was no ITS sequence data known from powdery mildews on Hydrangea. Therefore, this is the first sequence of O. hortensiae submitted to GenBank. Nevertheless, a GenBank BLAST search of this sequence showed >99% similarity with those of Oidium spp. recorded on crassulacean hosts (e.g. GenBank Accession Nos. EU185641 ex Sedum, EU185636 ex Echeveria, and EU185639 ex Dudleya) (2), suggesting their close phylogenetic relationship. Pathogenicity was confirmed through inoculation by gently pressing diseased leaves onto leaves of five healthy potted mophead hydrangea cv. Emerald plants. Five noninoculated plants of the same cultivar served as controls. Plants were maintained in a greenhouse at 22 ± 2°C. Inoculated plants developed signs and symptoms after 6 days, whereas the control plants remained healthy. The fungus present on the inoculated plants was morphologically identical to that originally observed on diseased plants, fulfilling Koch's postulates. Occurrence of powdery mildew disease on mophead hydrangea is circumglobal (1). To our knowledge, this is the first report of powdery mildew disease caused by O. hortensiae on mophead hydrangea in Korea. Powdery mildew infections in Korea pose a serious threat to the continued production of quality potted mophead hydrangea in polyethylene-film-covered greenhouses. References: (1) D. F. Farr and A. Y. Rossman. Fungal Databases, Systematic Mycology and Microbiology Laboratory, ARS, USDA. Retrieved March 19, 2012, from http://nt.ars-grin.gov/fungaldatabases/ . (2) B. Henricot. Plant Pathol. 57:779, 2008. (3) A. Schmidt and M. Scholler. Mycotaxon 115:287, 2011. (4) S. Tanda. J. Agric. Sci. Tokyo Univ. Agric. 43:253, 1999.

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First Report of Powdery Mildew caused by Podosphaera xanthii on Euphorbia tithymaloides in Malaysia

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-08-20-1700-pdn ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Siti Izera Ismail ◽

Aziera Roslen

Keyword(s):

Powdery Mildew ◽

Sequence Data ◽

Morphological Characteristics ◽

Pathogenicity Test ◽

Podosphaera Xanthii ◽

Sequence Alignments ◽

Voucher Specimen ◽

First Report ◽

Initial Symptoms ◽

Young Leaves

Euphorbia tithymaloides L. (zig-zag plant) is a succulent, perennial shrub belonging to the Euphorbiaceae family and is widely cultivated in Malaysia for ornamental purposes and commercial values. In June 2019, typical symptoms of powdery mildew were observed on over 50% of the leaves of E. tithymaloides in a garden at Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang city of Selangor province, Malaysia. Initial symptoms included circular to irregular white powdery fungal colonies on both leaf surfaces and later covered the entire leaf surface. Severely infected leaves became necrotic, distorted and senesced. A voucher specimen Ma (PM001-Ma) was deposited in the Mycology laboratory, Faculty of Agriculture, UPM. Microscopic observation showed hyphae hyaline, branched, thin-walled, smooth, 3 to 6 µm wide with nipple-shaped appressoria. Conidiophores were straight, measured 30 to 90 μm long × 8 to 12 μm wide and composed of a cylindrical foot cell, 50 to 75 μm long. Conidia formed in chains were hyaline, ellipsoid to oval with fibrosin bodies, measured 25 to 36 × 16 to 20.1 μm in size and chasmothecia were not observed on the infected leaves. Genomic DNA was directly isolated from mycelia and conidia of isolate Ma using DNeasy Plant Mini Kit (Qiagen, USA). The universal primer pair ITS4/ITS5 of rDNA (White et al. 1990) was used for amplification and the resulting 569-bp sequence was deposited in GenBank (Accession no. MT704550). A BLAST nucleotide search revealed 100% similarity with that of Podosphaera xanthii on Momordica charantia wild from Taiwan (Accession no. KM505135) (Kirschner and Liu 2015). Both the morphological characteristics of the anamorph and ITS sequence data support the identification of this powdery mildew on E. tithymaloides as Podosphaera xanthii (Castagne) U. Braun & Shishkoff (Braun and Cook 2012). A pathogenicity test was conducted by gently pressing the infected leaves onto young leaves of five healthy potted plants. Five noninoculated plants were used as controls. The inoculated plants were maintained in a greenhouse at 25 ± 2°C and the test was repeated. Seven days after inoculation, white powdery symptoms were observed similar to those on the naturally infected leaves, while control plants remained asymptomatic. The fungus on the inoculated leaves was morphologically and molecularly identical to the fungus on the original specimens. Sequence alignments were made using MAFFT v.7.0 (Katoh et al. 2019) and a maximum likelihood phylogram was generated by MEGA v.7.0 (Kumar et al. 2016). Isolate Ma grouped in a strongly supported clade (100% bootstrap value) with the related species of P. xanthii available in GenBank based on the ITS region. Powdery mildew caused by P. xanthii has been reported as a damaging disease that can infect a broad range of plants worldwide (Farr and Rossman 2020). It also has been recently reported on Sonchus asper in China (Shi et al. 2020). According to our knowledge, this is the first report of powdery mildew caused by P. xanthii on E. tithymaloides worldwide. The occurrence of powdery mildew on E. tithymaloides could pose a serious threat to the health of this plant, resulting in death and premature senescence of young leaves.

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First Report of Powdery Mildew Caused by Golovinomyces sonchicola on Ixeris chinensis in Korea

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-11-13-1132-pdn ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 98 (7) ◽

pp. 999-999 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

J. K. Choi ◽

B. S. Kim ◽

S. H. Hong ◽

S. E. Cho ◽

H. D. Shin

Keyword(s):

Powdery Mildew ◽

Sequence Similarity ◽

Folk Medicine ◽

Morphological Characteristics ◽

Its Region ◽

Width Ratio ◽

Lateral Part ◽

Potential Threat ◽

First Report ◽

Powdery Mildews

Ixeris chinensis (Thunb.) Nakai, known as Chinese ixeris, is distributed from Siberia to Japan, including Korea, Taiwan, and China. The whole plant has been used in folk medicine in Asia (4). In Korea, the plants of Chinese ixeris have been gathered and used as a wild root vegetable. During summer to autumn of 2011, Chinese ixeris leaves were found to be heavily infected with a powdery mildew in several locations of Korea. Symptoms first appeared as thin white colonies, which subsequently developed into abundant hyphal growth on both sides of the leaves, leading to drying of the leaves. The same symptoms on Chinese ixeris leaves were continuously observed in 2012 and 2013. Voucher specimens (n = 10) were deposited at Korea University Herbarium (KUS). Hyphal appressoria were moderately lobed or nipple-shaped. Conidiophores arose from the lateral part of the hyphae, measured 100 to 270 × 10 to 12.5 μm, and produced 2 to 6 immature conidia in chains with a sinuate outline. Basal parts of foot-cells in conidiophores were curved. Conidia were barrel-shaped to ellipsoid, measured 26 to 36 × 13 to 19 μm (length/width ratio = 1.7 to 2.4), lacked fibrosin bodies, and showed reticulate wrinkling of the outer walls. Primary conidia were ovate with conical-obtuse apex and subtruncate base. Germ tubes were produced on the perihilar position of conidia. Chasmothecia were not observed. The morphological characteristics were typical of the Euoidium type anamorph of the genus Golovinomyces, and the fungus measurements and structures were consistent with those of G. sonchicola U. Braun & R.T.A. Cook (1). To confirm the identification, internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of rDNA sequences from a representative material (KUS-F26212) was amplified using primers ITS5/P3 and sequenced (3). The resulting 416-bp sequence was deposited in GenBank (Accession No. KF819857). A GenBank BLAST search revealed that the isolate showed >99% sequence similarity with those of G. cichoracearum from Sonchus spp. (e.g., AB453762, AF011296, JQ010848, etc.). G. sonchicola is currently confined to G. cichoracearum s. lat. on Sonchus spp., based on molecular sequence analyses (1). Pathogenicity was confirmed through inoculation by gently pressing a diseased leaf onto leaves of five healthy potted Chinese ixeris. Five non-inoculated plants served as controls. Inoculated plants developed symptoms after 6 days, whereas the controls remained symptomless. The fungus present on the inoculated plants was identical morphologically to that originally observed on diseased plants. Powdery mildew infections of I. chinensis associated with Golovinomyces have been known in China (2). To our knowledge, this is the first report of powdery mildew disease caused by G. sonchicola on I. chinensis in Korea. Farming of Chinese ixeris has recently started on a commercial scale in Korea. Though no statistical data are available, we postulate the cultivation area in Korea to be approximately 200 ha, mostly growing without chemical controls. Occurrence of powdery mildews poses a potential threat to safe production of this vegetable, especially in organic farming. References: (1) U. Braun and R. T. A. Cook. Taxonomic Manual of the Erysiphales (Powdery Mildews), CBS Biodiversity Series No.11. CBS, Utrecht, 2012. (2) F. L. Tai. Bull. Chinese Bot. Sci. 2:16, 1936. (3) S. Takamatsu et al. Mycol. Res. 113:117, 2009. (4) S. J. Zhang et al. J. Nat. Prod. 69:1425, 2006.

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