Interspecificity of Scab Fungus Isolated from Wild Syrian Pear (Pyrus syriaca).

Scab on pear is caused by two pathogens, Venturia pyrina on European pear and V. nashicola on Asian pear. Five races of V. pyrina and seven races of V. nashicola have been reported thus far and pathological specialization occurs in both species. Among them, the five race isolates of V. pyrina were previously found from wild Syrian pear. In this study, mating and morphological characteristics of Venturia isolates from Syrian pear were compared with those of isolates from European and Japanese pear cultivated in Japan. The results from mating experiments showed that Syrian pear isolates were compatible with European pear isolates of V. pyrina to produce ascospores but were sterile with V. nashicola isolates in culture. Interestingly, however, the size and shape of conidia collected from naturally infected leaves of Syrian pear resembled those of V. nashicola. This finding may open the way to study coevolution between pear hosts and Venturia spp. in the future.

Sensitivity to fungicides in isolates of Colletotrichum gloeosporioides and C. acutatum species complexes and efficacy against anthracnose diseases.

Colletotrichum species cause diseases on many plants and are among the 'top 10' fungal plant pathogens. Species of the C. gloeosporioides and C. acutatum complexes are particularly important because they infect temperate fruit crops, but their control relies largely on chemical fungicides. In this study, differences in intrinsic fungicide sensitivity were determined in vitro using isolates of the C. gloeosporioides sp. complex (C. fructicola, C. siamense, and C. tropicale) and the C. acutatum sp. complex (C. fioriniae and C. nymphaeae), which had never been exposed to fungicides. Mycelial growth of all isolates was sensitive to the QoI azoxystrobin, the SDHI benzovindiflupyr, and the new DMI fungicide mefentrifluconazole. The isolates of C. nymphaeae were highly sensitive to the phenylpyrrole fungicide fludioxonil. The isolates of C. gloeosporioides sp. complex were sensitive to the bis-guanidine fungicide iminoctadine-albesilate, whereas those of C. acutatum sp. complex were inherently insensitive. These results are valuable when sensitivity of field populations is monitored in resistance management. Although SDHI fungicides are largely not effective against diseases caused by Colletotrichum species, benzovindiflupyr controlled anthracnose disease of various crops such as kidney bean, garland chrysanthemum, and strawberry, caused by C. lindemuthianum, C. chrysanthemi, and C. siamense, respectively, demonstrating this fungicide to be unique among SDHIs and having a broad control spectrum against anthracnose. To help understanding the reason for differential activity of benzovindiflupyr and boscalid, sdhB gene sequences were analyzed but those of C. lindemuthianum, C. chrysanthemi, and C. scovillei revealed no known mutations reported to be responsible for SDHI resistance in other fungi, indicating that other mechanism(s) than target-site modification may be involved in differential sensitivity to benzovindiflupyr and boscalid, found in Colletotrichum species.

Pathogenic Specialization of Venturia nashicola, Causal Agent of Asian Pear Scab, and Resistance of Pear Cultivars Kinchaku and Xiangli.

Scab caused by Venturia nashicola is one of the most serious diseases of Asian pears, including Japanese pear (Pyrus pyrifolia var. culta) and Chinese pears (P. bretschneideri and P. ussuriensis). Breeding scab-resistant pear cultivars is essential to minimize fungicide use and development of fungicide resistance. A survey of pathogenic specialization in V. nashicola is needed to ensure durable scab resistance in cultivated pears. V. nashicola race 1, 2, and 3 isolates, each differing in pathogenicity to Japanese pear cultivar Kousui and Asian pear strain Mamenashi 12, have been reported in Japan. In this study, isolates collected from scabbed pears in China and Taiwan were classified as V. nashicola based on conidial size and mating ability. However, various isolates had pathogenicity distinct from races 1, 2, and 3 according to tests on seven differential host genotypes of pear cultivars from Japan (Kousui and strain Mamenashi 12), China (Jingbaili, Yali, Linyuli, and Nanguoli), and Taiwan (Hengshanli). These new races were designated as races 4 to 7. Progenies characteristic of race 3 isolates were produced using a cross between race 1 and race 2 isolates, suggesting the possible role of sexual recombination in the emergence of novel races. Japanese pear cultivar Kinchaku and Chinese P. sinkiangensis 'Xiangli' (a Korla fragrant pear grown in China) did not show visible symptoms after inoculation with any of the seven races. Broad scab resistance in Kinchaku and Xiangli makes them a promising genetic resource for resistance breeding programs.

Inherent tolerance of Colletotrichum gloeosporioides to fludioxonil.

Colletotrichum spp. cause devastating diseases in agricultural crops, including fruit crops. They can differ in host plant and plant organ specificity and even in fungicide sensitivity. In strawberry, members of the C. gloeosporioides species complex (referred to as C. gloeosporioides) primarily cause crown rot and those of the C. acutatum species complex (referred to as C. acutatum) primarily cause fruit rot. Fludioxonil is registered for use (in combination with cyprodinil; Switch 62.5WG in the US) in strawberry against anthracnose disease caused by Colletotrichum spp. In this study we examined the sensitivity of C. gloeosporioides (C. fructicola and C. siamense) and C. acutatum (C. nymphaeae and C. fioriniae) isolates from different hosts and different geographical locations in the US to fludioxonil and examined possible mechanisms of inherent fungicide tolerance. The dose response to fludioxonil of C. gloeosporioides isolates (including 4 isolates of C. theobromicola) revealed about 70% inhibition of mycelial growth at 1 mg/L that was maintained at 10 mg/L and 100 mg/L and lead to minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values >100 mg/L. In contrast, mycelial growth of C. acutatum isolates was completely inhibited at 1 mg/L. C. gloeosporioides isolates were also significantly less sensitive to iprodione. An investigation into possible mechanisms of C. gloeosporioides isolates tolerance to fludioxonil and iprodione revealed no evidence of OS-1 gene involvement. Isolates of both species complexes were equally sensitive to salt stress based on mycelial growth inhibition on potato dextrose agar amended with 2%, 4%, and 6% NaCl. In addition, orthologous amino acid alterations in OS-1 previously linked to fludioxonil resistance in Botrytis cinerea were not found in C. gloeosporioides or C. acutatum isolates. This study also showed limited in vitro inhibitory activity of cyprodinil against isolates of both species complexes (MIC values >100 mg/L) and unveils a potential weakness of the fludioxonil+cyprodinil premixture marketed as Switch 62.5WG against C. gloeosporioides species complexes.

Cross-resistance to the new fungicide mefentrifluconazole in DMI-resistant fungal pathogens.

In the European Union (EU), regulation of sterol demethylation inhibiting (DMI) fungicides is tightened due to their suspected endocrine disrupting properties. However, the new DMI fungicide mefentrifluconazole was reported to have high fungicidal activity with minimal adverse side effects. In addition, some evidence suggests inconsistent cross resistance between mefentrifluconazole and other azoles. In this study, mefentrifluconazole and other triazoles were examined for activity to select pathogens sensitive or resistant to DMIs using mycelial growth tests on fungicide-treated culture medium or spray trials using cucumber plants. Cross-resistance was confirmed for all of the fungal species tested but activity levels varied. The sensitivity of Monilinia fructicola from peach to mefentrifluconazole was higher compared to other DMIs. In contrast, the inhibitory activity of mefentrifluconazole was equal or slightly inferior compared to difenoconazole, tebuconazole, propiconazole in Colletotrichum spp., Alternaria alternaria sp. complex and Cercospora beticola isolated from peach and sugar beet, respectively. Similar tendencies (i.e. equal or slightly inferior activity and cross-resistance) were observed for cucumber powdery mildew (Podosphaera xanthii) resistant to triflumizole, myclobutanil, and difenoconazole. Despite cross-resistance to other DMIs, mefentrifluconazole is a promising fungicide for fungal disease control on peach and other crops, with a reportedly more favorable toxicity profile.

Whole Genome Sequence Resource of the Asian Pear Scab Pathogen Venturia nashicola.

Venturia nashicola, the cause of scab disease of Asian pears, is a host-specific, biotrophic fungus. It is restricted to Asia and is regarded as a quarantine threat outside this region. European pear displays nonhost resistance (NHR) to V. nashicola and Asian pears are nonhosts of V. pyrina (the cause of European pear scab disease). The host specificity of these two fungi is likely governed by differences in their effector arsenals, with a subset hypothesized to activate NHR. The Pyrus-Venturia pathosystem provides an opportunity to dissect the underlying genetics of nonhost interactions in this potentially more durable form of resistance. The V. nashicola genome will enable comparisons to other Venturia spp. genomes to identify effectors that potentially activate NHR in the pear scab pathosystem.

DMI-Fungicide Resistance in Venturia nashicola, the Causal Agent of Asian Pear Scab-How Reliable Are Mycelial Growth Tests in Culture?

Scab, caused by Venturia nashicola, is among the most serious diseases of Asian pears and control of this disease largely relies on sterol demethylation inhibitor (DMI) fungicides. However, pear growers have complained about field performance of DMIs since the mid-2000s. In this study, to evaluate pathogen sensitivity, mycelial growth tests and inoculation tests were conducted using DMI-amended culture medium and fungicide-sprayed potted pear trees, respectively. Results confirmed distribution of isolates resistant to fenarimol, hexaconazole, and difenoconazole in the field populations. Importantly, results from tests in culture did not fully correlate with those from tests in planta. Due to phenotypic instability of resistance and poor sporulation of this pathogen in culture, resistance is generally assessed by laborious and time-consuming inoculation with conidia collected from a field. To improve the result interpretation from in vitro tests, the isolates were genotyped: the CYP51 gene which encodes the target sterol 14α-demethylase was sequenced and various mutations have been detected in the coding sequence of DMI-resistant isolates. In addition to the detected single nucleotide polymorphisms, alternative mechanisms, not based on changes in the structure of the target protein, may also increase DMI resistance. Development of molecular methods for the diagnosis of DMI resistance seems to be challenging in V. nashicola.

Systemic resistance inducer acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM) and its microencapsulated formulations: their long-lasting control efficacy against cucumber diseases and mitigation of phytotoxicity.

BACKGROUND: The development of fungicide resistance by pathogens is a major limiting factor for the control of plant diseases. To combat resistance development, the use of broad-spectrum but nonfungitoxic resistance inducers such as acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM) is a promising approach because the orchestrated mechanisms underlying systemic acquired resistance induced by ASM are less likely to be overcome easily by pathogens. However, phytotoxicity is the main limiting factor of ASM. RESULTS: ASM was highly active at inducing systemic resistance against powdery and downy mildews, the two major cucumber diseases. Based on the duration of the control, ASM effectiveness against these diseases was maintained well in plastic greenhouses and the number of sprays could be reduced. Control efficacy after seed treatment with ASM and the applications of microencapsulated ASM was also high against mildews in pots as well as in greenhouse experiments, with no problematic phytotoxicity. CONCLUSION: The use of ASM is a potential integrated pest management-based tactic to control cucumber powdery and downy mildews because its long-lasting efficacy allows the application of typical fungicides to be reduced. The risk for resistance development in mildew pathogens will also be reduced. ASM seed treatment as well as soil amendment with microencapsulated ASM is effective in lowering the risk for the phytotoxicity of this compound. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry.

Fungicide Sensitivity and Phylogenetic Relationship of Anthracnose Fungi Isolated from Various Fruit Crops in Japan.

Anthracnose diseases of fruit crops are mainly caused by Colletotrichum gloeosporioides and C. acutatum. In these Colletotrichum species, intra- and interspecific variation in fungicide sensitivity has been reported; however, the relationship between fungicide sensitivity and molecular phylogeny has not been analyzed. Fifty-one isolates from 10 fruit crops, acacia, and tea were tested for their sensitivities to thiophanate-methyl, diethofencarb, and iminoctadine-triacetate, and their internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and 5.8S regions of rDNA were analyzed. C. gloeosporioides isolates were divided into sensitive, less sensitive, intermediate resistant, or resistant to the three fungicides. In contrast, C. acutatum isolates were all less sensitive. In molecular phylogenetic analyses, C. gloeosporioides isolates fell into the same genetic group, whereas C. acutatum isolates were placed into two genetic groups. Although phylogenetic relationship was not closely related to fungicide sensitivity, the isolates of C. gloeosporioides most resistant to iminoctadine-triacetate were found in the same phylogenetic subgroup.

Efficacy of SDHI fungicides, including benzovindiflupyr, against Colletotrichum species.

BACKGROUND: Colletotrichum species cause anthracnose diseases on many plants and crops. A new generation of succinate dehydrogenase inhibitors (SDHIs) was developed recently. The inhibitory activity of the five SDHI fungicides against Colletotrichum species was determined in this study. RESULTS: Isolates of C. gloeosporioides, C. acutatum, C. cereale and C. orbiculare were insensitive (naturally resistant) to boscalid, fluxapyroxad and fluopyram on YBA agar medium. In contrast, these isolates were relatively sensitive to penthiopyrad, except for C. orbiculare. Most interestingly, benzovindiflupyr showed highest inhibitory activity against all of these four species. Benzovindiflupyr was effective against C. gloeosporioides and C. acutatum on apple and peach fruit, as well as on cucumber plants inoculated with C. orbiculare. The sdhB, sdhC and sdhD genes encoding the subunits of fungicide-targeted succinate dehydrogenase were sequenced, but, despite high polymorphisms, no apparent resistance mutations were found in Colletotrichum species. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first report on the activity of benzovindiflupyr against Colletotrichum species. The broad-spectrum efficacy of benzovindiflupyr within the Colletotrichum genus might be exploited when designing disease management strategies against various pathogens on a wide range of crops. Other mechanism(s) than fungicide target-site modification may be responsible for differential sensitivity of Colletotrichum species to SDHI fungicides. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

Proposal for a unified nomenclature for target-site mutations associated with resistance to fungicides.

Evolved resistance to fungicides is a major problem limiting our ability to control agricultural, medical and veterinary pathogens and is frequently associated with substitutions in the amino acid sequence of the target protein. The convention for describing amino acid substitutions is to cite the wild-type amino acid, the codon number and the new amino acid, using the one-letter amino acid code. It has frequently been observed that orthologous amino acid mutations have been selected in different species by fungicides from the same mode of action class, but the amino acids have different numbers. These differences in numbering arise from the different lengths of the proteins in each species. The purpose of the present paper is to propose a system for unifying the labelling of amino acids in fungicide target proteins. To do this we have produced alignments between fungicide target proteins of relevant species fitted to a well-studied 'archetype' species. Orthologous amino acids in all species are then assigned numerical 'labels' based on the position of the amino acid in the archetype protein. © 2016 The Authors. Pest Management Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.

Acibenzolar-s-methyl-induced resistance to Japanese pear scab is associated with potentiation of multiple defense responses.

ABSTRACT This study reports the mode of action of acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM) against Japanese pear scab, caused by Venturia nashicola. Pretreatment of potted Japanese pear trees with ASM reduced scab symptoms and potentiated several lines of plant defense response. This included transcripts encoding polygalacturonase-inhibiting protein (PGIP) that were highly and transiently promoted after scab inoculation of plants pretreated with ASM, suggesting a possible role for defenses involved in direct interaction with the pathogen. The activity of the key enzyme of phenylpropanoid pathway, phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), was enhanced in scab-inoculated leaves pretreated with ASM only 7 days after inoculation, suggesting that it may play a minor role in induced resistance. In this work, salicylic acid (SA) accumulation was enhanced in ASM-treated leaves for the first time, according to an equivalent time course to that of PAL activity. However, a delayed induction of SA accumulation in ASM-treated leaves compared with kinetics of induction of several pathogenesis- related (PR) proteins or their encoding genes suggested that resistance triggered by ASM may be SA-independent. Among these PR proteins, PR-1, chitinase and PR-10 were promoted early by ASM after scab inoculation. Peroxidase, as well as enzymes involved in the oxidative burst such as superoxide dismutase, catalase, and ascorbate peroxidase were weakly activated with ASM treatment alone or pathogen inoculation alone and highly enhanced in ASM pretreated plants upon challenge inoculation, suggesting the occurrence of priming phenomenon during the interaction of Japanese pear-ASM-V. nashicola. An early potentiation of the activity of these enzymes after scab inoculation of leaves pretreated with ASM suggested that active oxygen species may be involved as a signal for the activation of PR proteins or genes.

Cytological evaluation of the effect of azoxystrobin and alternative oxidase inhibitors in Botrytis cinerea.

Azoxystrobin (AZ), a strobilurin-derived fungicide, is known to inhibit mitochondrial respiration in fungi by blocking the electron transport chain in the inner mitochondrial membrane. Germination was strongly inhibited when Botrytis cinerea spore suspension was treated with AZ and the alternative oxidase (AOX) inhibitors, salicylhydroxamic acid (SHAM) and n-propyl gallate. However, chemical death indicators trypan blue and propidium iodide showed that those spores were still alive. When the spore suspension in the AZ and SHAM solution was replaced with distilled water, the germination rate almost recovered, at least during the first 2 days of incubation with AZ and SHAM solution. No morphological alteration was detected in the cells treated with AZ and SHAM, especially in mitochondria, using transmission electron microscopy. Therefore, simultaneous application of AZ and AOX inhibitors has a fungistatic, rather than a fungicidal, action.

Genetic analysis and molecular characterisation of laboratory and field mutants of Botryotinia fuckeliana (Botrytis cinerea) resistant to QoI fungicides.

BACKGROUND: QoI fungicides, inhibitors of mitochondrial respiration, are considered to be at high risk of resistance development. In several phytopathogenic fungi, resistance is caused by mutations (most frequently G143A) in the mitochondrial cytochrome b (cytb) gene. The genetic and molecular basis of QoI resistance were investigated in laboratory and field mutants of Botryotinia fuckeliana (de Bary) Whetz. exhibiting in vitro reduced sensitivity to trifloxystrobin. RESULTS: B. fuckeliana mutants highly resistant to trifloxystrobin were obtained in the laboratory by spontaneous mutations in wild-type strains, or from naturally infected plants on a medium amended with 1-3 mg L(-1) trifloxystrobin and 2 mM salicylhydroxamic acid, an inhibitor of alternative oxidase. No point mutations were detected, either in the complete nucleotide sequences of the cytb gene or in those of the aox and Rieske protein genes of laboratory mutants, whereas all field mutants carried the G143A mutation in the mitochondrial cytb gene. QoI resistance was always maternally inherited in ascospore progeny of sexual crosses of field mutants with sensitive reference strains. CONCLUSIONS: The G143A mutation in cytb gene is confirmed to be responsible for field resistance to QoIs in B. fuckeliana. Maternal inheritance of resistance to QoIs in progeny of sexual crosses confirmed that it is caused by extranuclear genetic determinants. In laboratory mutants the heteroplasmic state of mutated mitochondria could likely hamper the G143A detection, otherwise other gene(s) underlying different mechanisms of resistance could be involved.

Lack of cross-resistance to a novel succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor, fluopyram, in highly boscalid-resistant isolates of Corynespora cassiicola and Podosphaera xanthii.

BACKGROUND: Recently in Japan, isolates resistant to boscalid, a succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor (SDHI), have been detected in Corynespora cassiicola (Burk. & Curt.) Wei and Podosphaera xanthii (Castaggne) Braun & Shishkoff, the pathogens causing Corynespora leaf spot and powdery mildew disease on cucumber, respectively. Resistant isolates of C. cassiicola are widely distributed and represent a serious problem in disease control at present. Novel SDHI fungicides, including fluopyram, are now under development. RESULTS: The growth of very highly boscalid-resistant, highly resistant and sensitive isolates of C. cassiicola was strongly suppressed on fluopyram-amended YBA agar medium. Although boscalid and another SDHI, penthiopyrad, hardly controlled Corynespora leaf spot and powdery mildew on cucumber plants when very highly or highly boscalid-resistant isolates were employed for inoculation, fluopyram still exhibited excellent control efficacy against these resistant isolates as well as sensitive isolates of C. cassiicola and P. xanthii. CONCLUSION: Differential sensitivity to boscalid, penthiopyrad and fluopyram, clearly found in these two important pathogens of cucumber, may indicate involvement of a slightly distinct site of action for fluopyram from the two other SDHIs. This finding may lead to the discovery of unique SDHIs in the future.

Site-directed mutagenesis of the cytochrome b gene and development of diagnostic methods for identifying QoI resistance of rice blast fungus.

BACKGROUND: It is possible that a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) (G143A mutation) in the cytochrome b gene could confer resistance to quinone outside inhibiting (QoI) fungicides (strobilurins) in rice blast fungus because this mutation caused a high level of resistance to fungicides such as azoxystrobin in Pyricularia grisea Sacc. and other fungal plant pathogens. The aim of this study was to survey Magnaporthe oryzae B Couch sp. nov. isolates in Japan for resistance to QoIs, and to try to develop molecular detection methods for QoI resistance. RESULTS: A survey on the QoI resistance among M. oryzae isolates from rice was conducted in Japan. A total of 813 single-spore isolates of M. oryzae were tested for their sensitivity to azoxystrobin using a mycelial growth test on PDA. QoI fungicide resistance was not found among these isolates. The introduction of G143A mutation into a plasmid containing the cytochrome b gene sequence of rice blast fungus was achieved by site-directed mutagenesis. Molecular diagnostic methods were developed for identifying QoI resistance in rice blast fungus using the plasmid construct. CONCLUSION: As the management of rice blast disease is often dependent on chemicals, the rational design of control programmes requires a proper understanding of the fungicide resistance phenomenon in field populations of the pathogen. Mutation of the cytochrome b gene of rice blast fungus would be specifically detected from diseased leaves and seeds using the molecular methods developed in this study.

Characterisation of QoI-resistant field isolates of Botrytis cinerea from citrus and strawberry.

BACKGROUND: In 2004, field isolates of Botrytis cinerea Pers. ex Fr., resistant to strobilurin fungicides (QoIs), were first found in commercial citrus orchards in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. Subsequently, QoI-resistant isolates of this fungus were also detected in plastic strawberry greenhouses in Saga, Ibaraki and Chiba prefectures, Japan. Biological and molecular characterisation of resistant isolates was conducted in this study. RESULTS: QoI-resistant isolates of B. cinerea grew well on PDA plates containing kresoxim-methyl or azoxystrobin at 1 mg L(-1), supplemented with 1 mM of n-propyl gallate, an inhibitor of alternative oxidase, whereas the growth of sensitive isolates was strongly suppressed. Results from this in vitro test were in good agreement with those of fungus inoculation tests in vivo. In resistant isolates, the mutation at amino acid position 143 of the cytochrome b gene, known to be the cause of high QoI resistance in various fungal pathogens, was found, but only occasionally. The heteroplasmy of cytochrome b gene was confirmed, and the wild-type sequence often present in the majority of resistant isolates, indicating that the proportion of mutated cytochrome b gene was very low. CONCLUSION: The conventional RFLP and sequence analyses of PCR-amplified cytochrome b gene are insufficient for molecular identification of QoI resistance in B. cinerea.