First Report of Fusarium oxysporum Causing Root Rot in Ophiopogon bodinieri in China

HomePlant DiseaseVol. 104, No. 4First Report of Fusarium oxysporum Causing Root Rot in Ophiopogon bodinieri in China PreviousNext DISEASE NOTES OPENOpen Access licenseFirst Report of Fusarium oxysporum Causing Root Rot in Ophiopogon bodinieri in ChinaB. H. Lu, Z. Wang, G. J. Yi, G. W. Tan, F. Zeng, Z. Y. Hu, H. L. Yi, M. Y. Xu, M. A. Dita, and C. Y. LiB. H. LuPubang Landscape Architecture Co., Ltd., Guangzhou 510600, ChinaSearch for more papers by this author, Z. Wanghttp://orcid.org/0000-0001-5482-5807College of Horticulture, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, ChinaSearch for more papers by this author, G. J. YiInstitution of Fruit Tree Research, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, ChinaKey Laboratory of South Subtropical Fruit Biology and Genetic Resource Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture, Guangzhou 510640, ChinaKey Laboratory of Tropical and Subtropical Fruit Tree Research of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou 510640, ChinaSearch for more papers by this author, G. W. TanPubang Landscape Architecture Co., Ltd., Guangzhou 510600, ChinaSearch for more papers by this author, F. ZengPubang Landscape Architecture Co., Ltd., Guangzhou 510600, ChinaSearch for more papers by this author, Z. Y. HuPubang Landscape Architecture Co., Ltd., Guangzhou 510600, ChinaSearch for more papers by this author, H. L. YiPubang Landscape Architecture Co., Ltd., Guangzhou 510600, ChinaSearch for more papers by this author, M. Y. XuPubang Landscape Architecture Co., Ltd., Guangzhou 510600, ChinaSearch for more papers by this author, M. A. Dita†Corresponding authors: M. A. Dita; E-mail Address: miguel.dita@gmail.com and C. Y. Li; E-mail Address: lichunyu881@163.comEmbrapa Cassava and Tropical Fruits, Cruz das Almas, 44380-000, Bahia, BrazilSearch for more papers by this author, and C. Y. Li†Corresponding authors: M. A. Dita; E-mail Address: miguel.dita@gmail.com and C. Y. Li; E-mail Address: lichunyu881@163.comInstitution of Fruit Tree Research, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, ChinaKey Laboratory of South Subtropical Fruit Biology and Genetic Resource Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture, Guangzhou 510640, ChinaKey Laboratory of Tropical and Subtropical Fruit Tree Research of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou 510640, ChinaSearch for more papers by this author AffiliationsAuthors and Affiliations B. H. Lu1 Z. Wang2 G. J. Yi3 4 5 G. W. Tan1 F. Zeng1 Z. Y. Hu1 H. L. Yi1 M. Y. Xu1 M. A. Dita6 † C. Y. Li3 4 5 † 1Pubang Landscape Architecture Co., Ltd., Guangzhou 510600, China 2College of Horticulture, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, China 3Institution of Fruit Tree Research, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China 4Key Laboratory of South Subtropical Fruit Biology and Genetic Resource Utilization, Ministry of Agriculture, Guangzhou 510640, China 5Key Laboratory of Tropical and Subtropical Fruit Tree Research of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou 510640, China 6Embrapa Cassava and Tropical Fruits, Cruz das Almas, 44380-000, Bahia, Brazil Published Online:29 Jan 2020https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-07-19-1542-PDNAboutSections ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmailWechat Ophiopogon bodinieri H. Lév. is an important ornamental groundcover widely used in urban gardens in southern China (Liu et al. 2011). In September 2017, a disease occurred on approximately 20% of O. bodinieri in 9 ha in Guangzhou, Guangdong province in China. Symptoms included etiolation in the leaves, wilt, root rot, and necrotic vascular systems. Three diseased plants were sampled for pathogen isolation. Portions (about 5 mm2) of symptomatic root tissues were dissected and surface disinfected (3% NaClO for 10 s and 70% ethanol for 30 s). Tissues were rinsed three times using sterile distilled water, dried on sterile filter paper, and transferred to Petri plates with potato dextrose agar (PDA) supplemented with streptomycin sulfate (150 µg/ml). Petri plates were incubated at 28°C for 5 days (Dita et al. 2010). Only one isolate was obtained from all the plates and was subcultured to new PDA plates. A single-spore isolate was obtained from a hyphal tip, and the culture characteristics and conidial morphology were studied on PDA and carnation leaf agar (CLA) (Neish 1983). The isolate grown on PDA formed abundant white-colored fungal colonies with radial mycelium in 5 days at 28°C. Microscopic observations from CLA medium revealed the curved macroconidia were usually three- to five-septate, with the size of 2.2 to 4.0 × 18.3 to 42.4 μm. Microconidia were kidney shaped with the size of 4.7 to 6.8 × 7.3 to 12.1 μm. Chlamydospores were single or in clusters, with the size of 9.1 to 11.0 μm in diameter. The elongation factor 1-alpha (EF1α) gene (accession no. MN026924, 686 bp), amplified and sequenced using primer pair EF-1/EF-2 (O’Donnell et al. 1998), showed 100% identification to a Fusarium oxysporum strain (accession no. KY508353.1) (Geiser et al. 2004). The molecular identification was confirmed via BLAST on the Fusarium ID and Fusarium MLST databases. Ten-week-old plants were used for pathogenicity tests. First, the plants were wounded by cutting off 1 cm of the roots. Then, 10 plants were inoculated by root dipping (30 min, 104 spores/ml), and another 10 plants were treated with sterile water as a control. The plants were then repotted in potting mix and incubated at 28°C. The assay was conducted three times. After 15 days, the plants showed symptoms of leaf wilting, root rot, and necrosis in vascular tissues. After 40 days, all the inoculated plants were dead, whereas no symptoms were observed in the controls. Subsequently, the F. oxysporum isolate was successfully reisolated from the inoculated plants and was identified again by sequencing the EF1α. The pathogen was further identified by PCR amplification and sequencing the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) gene region using the primers ITS5/ITS4 and the 18s nuclear ribosomal small subunit (SSU) using the primers NS1/NS4 (Schoch et al. 2012). The isolate showed 100% and 99% identity to those of F. oxysporum (accession KF498869.1 for ITS and KU512835.1 for SSU). The sequences of ITS (accession no. MH752745.1), SSU (accession no. MH752591.1), and EF1α (accession no. MN026924) were deposited in GenBank. The first F. oxysporum causing disease on another Ophiopogon species (O. japonicus) was discovered in Florida in 1991 (Farr and Rossman 2019). To our knowledge, this is the first report of root rot disease of O. bodinieri caused by F. oxysporum in the world. This disease may pose a risk for urban landscapes in China.The author(s) declare no conflict of interest.References:Dita, M. A., et al. 2010. Plant Pathol. 59:348. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3059.2009.02221.x Crossref, ISI, Google ScholarFarr, D. F., and Rossman, A. Y. 2019. Fungal Databases, Syst. Mycol. Microbiol. Lab., ARS, USDA. https://nt.ars-grin.gov/fungaldatabases/. Google ScholarGeiser, D. M., et al. 2004. Eur. J. Plant Pathol. 110:473. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:EJPP.0000032386.75915.a0 Crossref, ISI, Google ScholarLiu, B. Y., et al. 2011. Acta Prataculturae Sin. 20:123. Google ScholarNeish, G. A. 1983. Mycologia 75:190. https://doi.org/10.2307/3792947 Crossref, Google ScholarO’Donnell, K., et al. 1998. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 95:2044. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.95.5.2044 Crossref, ISI, Google ScholarSchoch, C. L., et al. 2012. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 109:E1812. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1207508109 Crossref, ISI, Google ScholarB. H. Lu and Z. Wang contributed equally to this work.The author(s) declare no conflict of interest.DetailsFiguresLiterature CitedRelated Vol. 104, No. 4 April 2020SubscribeISSN:0191-2917e-ISSN:1943-7692 DownloadCaptionDisease symptoms of leaves of the peach cultivar Royal Bell caused by Xanthomonas arboricola pv. pruni (R. Iličić and T. Popović). Photo credit: R. Iličić. Symptoms of chilli yellow ringspot virus on a chilli pepper plant (K. Y. Zheng et al.). Photo credit: J. H. Dong. Metrics Downloaded 648 times Article History Issue Date: 3 Apr 2020Published: 29 Jan 2020First Look: 9 Dec 2019Accepted: 2 Dec 2019 Page: 1254 Information© 2020 The American Phytopathological SocietyKeywordsfungiepidemiologydisease development and spreadtreesornamentalsThe author(s) declare no conflict of interest.