Molecular Identification and Phylogeny of Crops Pathogenic Fungi

A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Microbe Interactions".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2024 | Viewed by 5269

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Laboratory of Mycology and Phytopathology, All-Russian Institute of Plant Protection (VIZR), Podbelskogo shosse 3, 196608 St. Petersburg, Russia
Interests: fungi of the genus Fusarium: taxonomy, ecology, pathogenicity; mycotoxins; resistance of small-grain cereals to Fusarium head blight

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Co-Guest Editor
Laboratory of Mycology and Phytopathology, All-Russian Institute of Plant Protection (VIZR), Podbelskogo shosse 3, 196608 St. Petersburg, Russia
Interests: fungi of the genus Alternaria; taxonomy; phylogeny; geographic distribution; population genetics; methods for species identification
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor Assistant
Laboratory of Mycology and Phytopathology, All-Russian Institute of Plant Protection (VIZR), Podbelskogo shosse 3, 196608 St. Petersburg, Russia
Interests: plant pathogenic fungi, taxonomy, phylogeny, molecular diagnostics, populations, pathogenicity, mycotoxins

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Plant pathogenic fungi are a significant group of microorganisms causing crop yield loss as well as reduction of agricultural products quality. Some of these fungi are widespread and associated with a broad range of host plants in different climatic conditions, while the others have a limited ecological and substrate habitat.

Meanwhile, environmental changes and high plasticity of fungal traits can lead to adaptation of fungi in new niches, their spread over a larger area, and the appearance of previously unobserved plant diseases.

An actual control strategy against fungal diseases in plant protection requires deep knowledge of the species within fungi infected the plants. Molecular biology tools allow accurate identification of the fungal species and help to significantly expand the understanding of the diversity of fungi, many species of which have not yet been found and studied. The phylogenetic analysis of fungal populations reveals the intraspecific diversity and provides a new insight into the speciation of fungal taxa and microevolution.

This Special Issue welcomes original articles on studies of fungal populations and species of well-known plant pathogens, and emerging fungi associated with a wide range of crops: cereals, legumes, oilseeds, vegetables, and fruits.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

Diversity of crops pathogenic fungi;Accurate identification of the fungal species;Taxonomy and systematics of plant pathogenic fungi;Phylogenetic analysis of fungal populations;Molecular biology tools for the detection of fungal diseases on plants;Effect of environmental conditions on fungal adaptation.

Dr. Olga P. Gavrilova
Dr. Philipp B. Gannibal
Guest Editors

Dr. Aleksandra S. Orina
Guest Editor Assistant

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Keywords

  • plant pathogenic fungi
  • taxonomy
  • phylogeny
  • new species
  • population
  • cereals
  • legumes
  • oilseeds
  • vegetables
  • fruits

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 6705 KiB  
Article
Identification and Pathogenicity of Fusarium Fungi Associated with Dry Rot of Potato Tubers
by Olga Gavrilova, Aleksandra Orina, Ilya Trubin and Tatiana Gagkaeva
Microorganisms 2024, 12(3), 598; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12030598 - 16 Mar 2024
Viewed by 856
Abstract
Dry rot of potato tubers is a harmful disease caused by species of the Fusarium genus. Studies on the composition and features of Fusarium spp. that cause the disease in Russia are limited. Thirty-one Fusarium strains belonging to the F. sambucinum species complex [...] Read more.
Dry rot of potato tubers is a harmful disease caused by species of the Fusarium genus. Studies on the composition and features of Fusarium spp. that cause the disease in Russia are limited. Thirty-one Fusarium strains belonging to the F. sambucinum species complex (FSAMSC) and F. solani species complex (FSSC) were accurately identified using multilocus phylogenetic analysis of the tef and rpb2 loci, and their physiological characteristics were studied in detail. As a result, 21 strains of F. sambucinum s. str. and 1 strain of F. venenatum within the FSAMSC were identified. Among the analyzed strains within the FSSC, one strain of F. mori, four strains of F. noneumartii, and two strains of both F. stercicola and F. vanettenii species were identified. This is the first record of F. mori on potato as a novel host plant, and the first detection of F. noneumartii and F. stercicola species in Russia. The clear optimal temperature for the growth of the strains belonging to FSAMSC was noted to be 25 °C, with a growth rate of 11.6–15.0 mm/day, whereas, for the strains belonging to FSSC, the optimal temperature range was between 25 and 30 °C, with a growth rate of 5.5–14.1 mm/day. The distinctive ability of F. sambucinum strains to grow at 5 °C has been demonstrated. All analyzed Fusarium strains were pathogenic to potato cv. Gala and caused extensive damage of the tuber tissue at an incubation temperature of 23 °C for one month. Among the fungi belonging to the FSAMSC, the F. sambucinum strains were more aggressive and caused 23.9 ± 2.2 mm of necrosis in the tubers on average compared to the F. venenatum strain—17.7 ± 1.2 mm. Among the fungi belonging to the FSSC, the F. noneumartii strains were the most aggressive and caused 32.2 ± 0.8 mm of necrosis on average. The aggressiveness of the F. mori, F. stercicola, and especially the F. vanettenii strains was significantly lower: the average sizes of damage were 17.5 ± 0.5 mm, 17.2 ± 0.2 mm, and 12.5 ± 1.7 mm, respectively. At an incubation temperature of 5 °C, only the F. sambucinum strains caused tuber necroses in the range of 6.7 ± 0.5–15.9 ± 0.8 mm. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Identification and Phylogeny of Crops Pathogenic Fungi)
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18 pages, 3947 KiB  
Article
Fusarium Species Causing Pepper Wilt in Russia: Molecular Identification and Pathogenicity
by Irina Engalycheva, Elena Kozar, Svetlana Frolova, Svetlana Vetrova, Tatyana Tikhonova, Elena Dzhos, Myazar Engalychev, Vera Chizhik, Viktor Martynov, Andrey Shingaliev, Ksenia Dudnikova, Maksim Dudnikov and Yulia Kostanchuk
Microorganisms 2024, 12(2), 343; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms12020343 - 6 Feb 2024
Viewed by 1086
Abstract
Fusarium wilt pathogens represent an ongoing threat to pepper production worldwide. This is the first report providing data on the molecular identification of Fusarium fungi that cause wilt in pepper in the southern regions of Russia. Monitoring of the Fusarium infection on pepper [...] Read more.
Fusarium wilt pathogens represent an ongoing threat to pepper production worldwide. This is the first report providing data on the molecular identification of Fusarium fungi that cause wilt in pepper in the southern regions of Russia. Monitoring of the Fusarium infection on pepper was carried out in 2019–2022 in two economically important regions of this culture production: the Krasnodar Krai and Crimea. Based on a phylogenetic analysis of the translation elongation factor (EF1a) and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS), as well as the macro- and micromorphological characteristics of the fungi, the causative agents of Fusarium wilt have been identified. The causative agents identified as representatives of the Fusarium species composition included: F. clavus, F. solani, F. oxysporum, F. verticillioides, F. commune, F. torulosum, and F. sporotrichioides. Depending on the region, the specifics of biodiversity and the ratio of these species in pathocomplexes were noted. In Crimea, wilting could be attributed to all of the identified species; in the Krasnodar Krai, F. verticillioides and F. clavus were found to contribute to wilting. The pathogenicity test showed that the pathogens of pepper wilting in Russia, in addition to the already known F. oxysporum and F. solani, are the species F. clavus and F. verticillioides. This is the first report on the ability of these species to cause Fusarium wilt in pepper cultures. The obtained data will be of practical value for the development of biological control measures for fungi of the genus Fusarium, which cause pepper wilt in areas of industrial production and seed production. In addition, data on species composition and aggressive isolates will be used in a pepper breeding program for resistance to Fusarium wilt. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Identification and Phylogeny of Crops Pathogenic Fungi)
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20 pages, 10641 KiB  
Article
Functional Characterization of Aldehyde Dehydrogenase in Fusarium graminearum
by Lei Tang, Huanchen Zhai, Shuaibing Zhang, Yangyong Lv, Yanqing Li, Shan Wei, Pingan Ma, Shanshan Wei, Yuansen Hu and Jingping Cai
Microorganisms 2023, 11(12), 2875; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms11122875 - 28 Nov 2023
Viewed by 1295
Abstract
Aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH), a common oxidoreductase in organisms, is an aldehyde scavenger involved in various metabolic processes. However, its function in different pathogenic fungi remains unknown. Fusarium graminearum causes Fusarium head blight in cereals, which reduces grain yield and quality and is an [...] Read more.
Aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH), a common oxidoreductase in organisms, is an aldehyde scavenger involved in various metabolic processes. However, its function in different pathogenic fungi remains unknown. Fusarium graminearum causes Fusarium head blight in cereals, which reduces grain yield and quality and is an important global food security problem. To elucidate the pathogenic mechanism of F. graminearum, seven genes encoding ALDH were knocked out and then studied for their function. Single deletions of seven ALDH genes caused a decrease in spore production and weakened the pathogenicity. Furthermore, these deletions altered susceptibility to various abiotic stresses. FGSG_04194 is associated with a number of functions, including mycelial growth and development, stress sensitivity, pathogenicity, toxin production, and energy metabolism. FGSG_00139 and FGSG_11482 are involved in sporulation, pathogenicity, and SDH activity, while the other five genes are multifunctional. Notably, we found that FGSG_04194 has an inhibitory impact on ALDH activity, whereas FGSG_00979 has a positive impact. RNA sequencing and subcellular location analysis revealed that FGSG_04194 is responsible for biological process regulation, including glucose and lipid metabolism. Our results suggest that ALDH contributes to growth, stress responses, pathogenicity, deoxynivalenol synthesis, and mitochondrial energy metabolism in F. graminearum. Finally, ALDH presents a potential target and theoretical basis for fungicide development. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Identification and Phylogeny of Crops Pathogenic Fungi)
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14 pages, 9462 KiB  
Article
Molecular Identification and Pathogenicity of Diaporthe eres and D. hongkongensis (Diaporthales, Ascomycota) Associated with Cherry Trunk Diseases in China
by Pengzhao Chen, Pranami D. Abeywickrama, Shuxian Ji, Yueyan Zhou, Xinghong Li, Wei Zhang and Jiye Yan
Microorganisms 2023, 11(10), 2400; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms11102400 - 26 Sep 2023
Viewed by 1230
Abstract
This study aimed to identify fungal species associated with trunk diseases of sweet cherries (Prunus avium) in several commercial cherry orchards in Beijing, Guizhou and Shandong provinces, China. In total, eighteen fungal strains that fitted well into the species concept of [...] Read more.
This study aimed to identify fungal species associated with trunk diseases of sweet cherries (Prunus avium) in several commercial cherry orchards in Beijing, Guizhou and Shandong provinces, China. In total, eighteen fungal strains that fitted well into the species concept of Diaporthe were isolated. Based on both morphological and multi-locus phylogenetic analyses of internal transcribed spacer region (ITS), beta-tubulin (tub-2), calmodulin (Cal) and translation elongation factor 1-α (tef1–α) sequencing data, fourteen isolates were identified as Diaporthe eres, while four isolates were classified as D. hongkongensis. Here, we report D. hongkongensis causing sweet cherry branch dieback disease and, further, we confirmed the host association of D. eres with sweet cherries in China. A pathogenicity assay revealed the ability of both D. eres and D. hongkongensis to cause shoot necrosis and stem lesions on Prunus avium cv. ‘Brooks’ (mean lesion lengths of 1.86 cm and 1.56 cm, respectively). The optimal temperature for the growth of both Diaporthe species was tested. The optimal growth temperature for D. hongkongensis was 30 °C, and the 25–28 °C temperatures were the most favorable for the growth of D. eres strains. This research advances the understanding of fungal trunk diseases in fruit crops, particularly gummosis and branch dieback disease in Chinese cherry orchards, and will aid growers in making decisions about cultural practices and disease management. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Identification and Phylogeny of Crops Pathogenic Fungi)
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Planned Papers

The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.

Dear Colleagues,

Plant pathogenic fungi are a significant group of microorganisms causing crop yield loss as well as reduction of agricultural products quality.
An actual control strategy against fungal diseases in plant protection requires deep knowledge of the species within fungi infected the plants. Molecular biology tools allow accurate identification of the fungal species and help to significantly expand the understanding of the diversity of fungi, many species of which have not yet been found and studied. The phylogenetic analysis of fungal populations reveals the intraspecific diversity and provides a new insight into the speciation of fungal taxa and microevolution.
This Special Issue on «Molecular Identification and Phylogeny of Crops Pathogenic Fungi» welcomes original articles on studies of fungal populations and species of well-known plant pathogens, and emerging fungi associated with a wide range of crops: cereals, legumes, oilseeds, vegetables, and fruits.

Dr. Olga P. Gavrilova
Dr. Philipp B. Gannibal
Dr. Aleksandra S. Orina
Guest Editors
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