Genetic diversity and virulence of phytopathogenic Burkholderia glumae strains isolated from rice cultivars in valleys of the high jungle of Peru.

Burkholderia glumae causes bacterial leaf blight in rice, and its global spread has been exacerbated by climate change. To understand the genetic diversity and virulence of B. glumae strains isolated from rice cultivars in Peru, 47 isolates were obtained from infected rice fields, all belonging to B. glumae, and confirmed by recA and toxB sequences. The BOX-PCR typing group 38 genomic profiles, and these turn into 7 Variable Number Tandem Repeats (VNTR) haplotypes. There was no correlation between clustering and geographical origin. Nineteen strains were selected for phenotypic characterization and virulence, using both the maceration level of the onion bulb proxy and inoculation of seeds of two rice cultivars. Several strains produced pigments other than toxoflavin, which correlated with onion bulb maceration. In terms of virulence at the seed level, all strains produced inhibition at the root and coleoptile level, but the severity of symptoms varied significantly between strains, revealing significant differences in pathogenicity. There is no correlation between maceration and virulence scores, probably reflecting different virulence mechanisms depending on the host infection stage. This is the first study to evaluate the VNTR diversity and virulence of Peruvian strains of B. glumae in two commercial cultivars.

Chloroplast genome of Tillandsia landbeckii Phil. (Bromeliaceae) a species adapted to the hyper-arid conditions of the Atacama and Peruvian desert.

Tillandsia landbeckii Phil. is a vulnerable species belonging to the terrestrial Bromeliaceae family; it is highly adapted to extremely hyper-arid conditions of the Atacama Desert and Peruvian deserts. In this study, we sequenced, assembled, and annotated its chloroplast genome. T. landbeckii chloroplast genome is 159,131 bp in length, containing a large single-copy region of 87,164 bp, a small single-copy region of 18,521 bp, and a pair of inverted repeat regions of 26,723 bp. The GC content of the chloroplast genome is 37.33%. It encodes a total of 132 genes, including 86 protein-coding genes, 38 tRNA genes and 8 rRNA genes. The phylogenetic tree indicates that T. landbeckii is placed within the Bromeliaceae family and has a close relationship with T. marconae with 100% support.

Chloroplast genome of Tillandsia marconae till & Vitek (Bromeliaceae), a hyperarid desert endangered species.

Tillandsia marconae Till & Vitek (Bromeliaceae) is a rare plant native species that grows over sand, in the coastal desert from Perú and Chile and is considered an endangered species. In this study, we assembled its chloroplast genome. The draft chloroplast genome of T. marconae is ca. 158,873 bp in length, containing a large single-copy region of 86,937 bp, a small single-copy region of 18,506 bp, and a pair of inverted repeat regions of 26,715 bp. The GC content of the draft chloroplast genome is 37.4%. It encodes a total of 135 genes, including 86 protein-coding genes, 38 tRNA genes, 8 rRNA genes, and three pseudogenes. The phylogenetic tree indicated that T. marconae is placed within the Bromeliaceae family and a close relationship with Tillandsia usneoides with 100% support.

Draft Genome Sequence of Bacillus thuringiensis Strain UNMSM10RA, Isolated from Potato Crop Soil in Peru.

The 5.5-Mb genome sequence of Bacillus thuringiensis strain UNMSM10RA, isolated from potato crop soil, is reported in this study. The strain UNMSM10RA contains 5,347 protein-coding sequences, 105 tRNA genes, 15 rRNA genes, and 5 noncoding RNA (ncRNA) genes, with an average G+C content of 35.1%.