bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
First Report of White Mold Caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum on Rosmarinus officinalis ‘Prostratus’ in Italy
Authors: Garibaldi A. , Minuto A. , Gullino M. L. 
Published: May 2007

Rosmarinus officinalis L. ‘Prostratus’ is an evergreen shrub that is native to the Mediterranean Region in southern Europe and grown as a potted plant in Italy. This cultivar is widely used in gardens and landscapes. During the winter of 2002, extensive chlorosis was observed on 8-month-old potted plants of R. officinalis L. ‘Prostratus’ grown outdoors in commercial farms near Albenga in northern Italy. Initial symptoms included stem necrosis at the soil level and darkening of leaves. As stem necrosis progressed, infected plants wilted and died. Wilt, characterized by the presence of soft and watery tissues, occurred within a few days on young plants. The disease infected 15% of the plants. Necrotic tissues became covered with a whitish mycelium that produced dark sclerotia. The diseased stem tissue was surface sterilized for 1 min in 1% NaOCl and plated on potato dextrose agar (PDA) amended with 100 ppm of streptomycin sulfate. Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (1) was consistently recovered from infected stem pieces. Sclerotia observed on infected plants measured 0.30 to 3.33 × 1.00 to 4.23 mm (average 1.31 × 1.88 mm). Sclerotia produced on PDA measured 0.09 to 3.08 × 0.38 to 4.05 mm (average 1.94 × 2.43 mm). Pathogenicity of three isolates obtained from infected plants and used in mixture was confirmed by inoculating 60-day-old plants grown in 14-cm-diameter pots in a glasshouse. Inoculum (wheat kernels infested with mycelium and sclerotia) for each isolate was placed on the soil surface around the base of each plant. Pathogenicity tests included three inoculated plants grown in separate pots per isolate. Three noninoculated plants grown in three pots served as controls. The inoculation trial was conducted twice. All plants were kept at temperatures ranging between 8 and 34°C (average 18°C) and watered as needed. Plants were covered with plastic for 96 h after inoculation to increase the moisture level. All inoculated plants developed symptoms of leaf yellowing within 30 days, soon followed by the appearance of white mycelium and sclerotia, and eventual wilt. Control plants remained symptomless. S. sclerotiorum was reisolated from the stems of inoculated plants. To our knowledge, this is the first report of white mold of R. officinalis L. ‘Prostratus’ in Italy and in Europe. S. sclerotiorum has been previously reported on R. officinalis in India (2) and the United States (3). The economic importance of this disease for the crop in Italy can be considered low at the moment. References: (1) N. F. Buchwald. Den. Kgl. Veterin.er-og Landbohojskoles Aarsskrift, 32:75, 1949. (2) L. Mohan. Indian Phytopathol. 47:443, 1994. (3) M. L. Putnam. Plant Pathol. 53:252, 2004.
First Report of Asian Soybean Rust Caused by Phakopsora pachyrhizi on Soybean in Alabama
Authors: Mullen J. M. , Sikora E. J. , McKemy J. M. , Palm M. E. , Levy L. , DeVries-Paterson R. 
Published: May 2007

On November 4, 2004, soybean leaves (Glycine max (L.) Merr) were submitted to the Auburn University Plant Diagnostic Lab by a State Department of Agriculture and Industries Inspector. Samples were collected from an 80-ha field of soybean plants in a late-reproductive-growth stage in Mobile County, Alabama. Under microscopic examination, leaves showed rust pustules in advanced stages of development with urediniospores and sori characteristic of Phakopsora spp. Uredinia were ostiolate in small, brown, angular leaf spots (2 to 3 mm) on lower leaf surfaces. Urediniospores were pale yellow-to-white, globose or ovate, 20 to 40 × 15 to 25 μm. In a subsequent visit to the field, symptoms and signs of the rust disease were observed on plants bordering the edge of the field since the majority of plants were senescent. Tan lesions on lower leaf surfaces contained small pustules surrounded by a small zone of slightly discolored necrotic tissue. Masses of tan spores covered the lower leaf surface pustules. Leaves were mailed overnight to the USDA National Identification Services (Mycology) Laboratory in Beltsville, MD. The fungal structures were confirmed to be a Phakopsora sp., and the sample was forwarded to the USDA National Plant Germplasm and Biotechnology Laboratory in Beltsville, MD. DNA was extracted from leaf pieces containing sori using the Qiagen DNeasy Plant Mini kit (Qiagen, Valencia, CA). Phakopsora pachyrhizi was detected using a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) protocol (1) performed in a Cepheid SmartCycler (Sunnyvale, CA). The PCR master mix was modified to include OmniMix beads (Cepheid). The field and microscopic suspect diagnosis of P. pachyrhizi was confirmed officially by APHIS on November 18, 2004. This was the fourth USDA official confirmation of Asian soybean rust in the continental United States during 2004, and to our knowledge, this is the first report of the disease in Alabama. This report helps confirm that early occurrences of Asian soybean rust in the United States were present in other areas in addition to the first reported finding in Louisiana (2). References: (1) R. D. Frederick et al. Phytopathology 92:217, 2002. (2) R. W. Schneider et al. Plant Dis. 89:774, 2005.
Geraldton Wax as a New Host for Agrobacterium tumefaciens in Argentina
Authors: Alippi A. M. , López A. C. , Wolcan S. M. 
Published: May 2007

During 2004, Geraldton wax plants (Chamaelaucium uncinatum cv. BM Violet) from commercial greenhouses in La Plata, Argentina showed gall-like structures on collars and roots similar to those reported by Carsten et al. (2). No pathogenic fungi were associated with lesions. Bacteria isolated from galls grown on medium 1A and D1M agar yielded colonies typical of Agrobacterium sp. (4). Four isolates were selected for further study. All isolates were aerobic, gram-negative rods and produced 3-ketolactose, but did not produce alkali from l-tartrate or accumulate poly-β-hydroxybutyrate inclusions. The isolates were able to grow with 2% NaCl, at 35°C, and also on potato dextrose agar medium containing CaCO3 (4) but without acid clarification. Polymerase chain reaction analysis with primers VCF/VCR that amplified the expected 730-bp product of virC operon confirmed that all strains harboured a Ti plasmid (3,4). In addition, strains were screened for extrachromosomal DNA by the in-well lysis and electrophoresis procedure of Eckhardt with minor modifications as reported by Albiach and Lopez (1) and compared with strain Agrobacterium tumefaciens LBA 958, all Argentinean strains tested harbored a plasmid similar in size. Pathogenicity was verified on Geraldton wax and tobacco plants. Bacterial suspensions of each isolate (108 CFU/ml) were pricked into the stems. Control plants were pricked with sterile distilled water. Plants were maintained at 23 ± 3°C and symptoms were recorded after 45 days. Development of almost spherical, white-to-flesh-colored, rough, spongy and wart-like galls at the inoculation sites of the inoculated collars, stems, and trunks were registered. In Geraldton wax, as galls aged, they become dark brown to black, rough, and woody. Bacteria were reisolated from these galls fulfilling Koch's postulates. No lesions were observed on the controls. To our knowledge, this is the first report of A. tumefaciens on C. uncinatum in Argentina. References: (1) M. R. Albiach and M. M. López. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 58:2683, 1992. (2) E. Carstens et al. Plant Dis. 83:783, 1999. (3) H. Sawada et al. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 61:828, 1995. (4) N. W. Schaad et al. Laboratory Guide for Identification of Plant Pathogenic Bacteria. 3rd ed. The American Phytopathological Society. St. Paul, MN, 2001.
First Report of Alfalfa mosaic virus on Rhamnus alaternus in France
Authors: Cardin L. , Moury B. 
Published: May 2007

Rhamnus alaternus L. (evergreen buckthorn), family Rhamnaceae, is a small, hardy shrub from Mediterranean regions grown for its ornamental persistent green or variegated foliage. Chlorotic oak leaf or ringspot symptoms on R. alaternus leaves have been observed in southern France (Bellegarde, Gard department in 1998; Fanjaux, Aude department in 2000; and Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, Alpes-Maritimes department in 2002). Samples from these three localities revealed the presence of Alfalfa mosaic virus (AMV) due to (i) the symptoms observed in an inoculated diagnostic host range previously described (1), (ii) observation of typical bullet-shaped virion particles of different sizes with transmission electron microscopy, (iii) nonpersistent transmission to Nicotiana tabacum cv. Xanthi-nc by Myzus persicae, and (iv) positive reaction in double-antibody sandwich-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (DAS-ELISA) to antibodies raised against AMV (gift of G. Marchoux). In addition, in Fanjaux, Viburnum tinus L. plants located close to the infected R. alaternus plants were also infected by AMV and exhibited typical intense calico mosaics (3). The close species, R. frangula L., was previously identified as a natural host for AMV in Italy (2). Following isolation from local lesions on Vigna unguiculata, the Fanjaux isolate was grown in cv. Xanthi-nc plants, where it induced a severe mosaic and stunting of the plants, and inoculated to 2-year-old virus-free R. alaternus plants either mechanically or with M. persicae (10 plants each). Plants were subsequently kept in an insect-proof greenhouse. At 8 and 12 months postinoculation, only one aphid-inoculated plant showed symptoms on young leaves and was AMV-positive in DAS-ELISA, while no mechanically infected plants were infected. This low infection level together with the rare observation of symptoms in natural conditions suggest that R. alaternus is not frequently infected by AMV. References: (1) L. Cardin and B. Moury. Plant Dis. 84:594, 2000. (2) F. Marani and L. Giunchedi. Acta Hortic. 59:97, 1976. (3) N. Plese and D. Milicic. Phytopathol. Z. 72:219, 1971.
First Report of Asian Soybean Rust Caused by Phakopsora pachyrhizi from Mexico
Authors: Cárcamo Rodríguez A. , Rios J. Aguilar , Hernández J. R. 
Published: May 2007

Leaves of soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.; Fabaceae) cv. Huasteca 400, with conspicuous chlorotic spots and associated hypophyllous cinnamon-brown sori, were collected in commercial soybean plantings in Ébano and Tamuín in the state of San Luis de Potosí, Mexico on 26 October 2005. Uredinia, Malupa-type, are mostly hypophyllous, minute, pulverulent, cinnamon-brown, scattered or in groups, subepidermal becoming erumpent, cone like, surrounded by paraphyses; paraphyses are cylindric to clavate, 25 to 50 × 6 to 14 μm, colorless to yellow brownish with wall thickened at the apex. Urediniospores are obovoid to broadly ellipsoidal, measuring 18 to 37 × 15 to 24 μm, and have a minutely echinulate thin wall, hyaline to pale yellowish brown. This morphology is typical of Phakopsora pachyrhizi Syd. & P. Syd. and P. meibomiae (Arthur) Arthur. DNA was extracted from leaves containing sori with the PureLink Plant DNA Reagent (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, CA), and the identity of P. pachyrhizi was confirmed by the polymerase chain reaction protocol (1) with Ppa1/Ppa2 primers at the National Phytosanitary Reference Center of Mexico. The morphological and molecular diagnosis and presence of P. pachyrhizi in Mexico was officially communicated by the North American Plant Protection Organization (NAPPO) on 16 February 2006. Asian soybean rust was reported for the first time in North America in 2004 (2). To our knowledge, this the first report of P. pachyrhizi in Mexico. Voucher specimens have been placed in the USDA National Fungus Collection as BPI 871130, BPI 871131, and BPI 871132. Images and a complete description of Asian soybean rust can be viewed at http://nt.arsgrin.gov/taxadescriptions/factsheets/index.cfm?thisapp=Phakopsorapachyr hizi . References: (1) R. D. Frederick et al. Phytopathology 92:217, 2002. (2) R. W. Schneider et al. Plant Dis. 89:774, 2005.
Curvularia Blight on Lolium perenne on Turfgrasses in Argentina
Authors: Goldring L. , Lacasa M. , Wright E. R. 
Published: May 2007

Lolium perenne L. is commonly used alone or in association with blue-grass and fescues in sport fields, parks, and gardens. During 2003, symptoms of an unknown disease were observed on L. perenne turfgrass in western Buenos Aires. Initial symptoms were indefinite yellow and green dappled spots that extended downward from the leaf tip, turned brown and finally gray, causing leaf death. Segments of symptomatic leaf tissues were surface sterilized and placed on 2% potato dextrose agar in petri dishes. After 4 days at room temperature, blackish brown colonies developed with dark brown septate conidiophores. Conidia were 21 to 29 × 9 to 13 μm, 3-septa, curved at the third cell from the base that is longer and darker than the others. Cells at each end are subhyaline and intermediate cells are medium brown. These characteristics are consistent with Curvularia lunata (Wakker) Boedijng (1). Pathogenicity tests were performed in five plastic trays with substrate of natural soil and sand (1:1 [v/v]) where the turfgrass (L. perenne cv. El Cencerro) was seeded. Plants were inoculated by spraying a suspension of 2 × 106 conidia per ml of sterile distilled water. Controls were sprayed with sterile distilled water. The trays were covered with transparent plastic bags, sprayed periodically with water, and incubated at 25°C in a greenhouse for 20 days. The first symptoms were observed 3 days later. After 9 days, 24% of the grass surface area showed blight lesions. C. lunata was consistently reisolated from affected tissues. Control plants remained symptomless. To our knowledge, this is the first report of C. lunata affecting L. perenne in Argentina. Reference: (1) M. B. Ellis and I. A. S. Gibson Cochliobolus lunatus (conidial state: Curvularia lunata). Page 474 in: Descriptions of Pathogenic Fungi and Bacteria. CMI, Kew, Surrey, UK, 1975.
First Report of Late Blight Caused by Phytophthora infestans on Cape Gooseberry (Physalis peruviana) in Colombia
Authors: Vargas A. M. , Correa A. , Lozano D. C. , González A. , Bernal A. J. , Restrepo S. , Jiménez P. 
Published: May 2007

Late blight caused by Phytophthora infestans is the most limiting disease for several species of the Solanaceae family in Colombia. A potential host for P. infestans is Cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana), a species belonging to the Solanaceae family. Its center of origin is the highlands of Peru and it is grown at approximately 1,500 to 3,000 m above sea level. Cape gooseberry has become an important export fruit in Colombia. Consequently, in the last few years, the area cultivated with Physalis peruviana has increased dramatically. P. infestans was isolated from this crop in the province of Cundinamarca, Colombia. Symptoms caused by this oomycete appeared initially on the leaf margins as small, irregular, necrotic spots that expanded and merged, increasing the necrotic area. These spots had a soft texture resulting from the degradation of plant tissue by the pathogen. On old lesions, white mycelia and sporangia were observed. Affected plants were rarely killed, but under favorable conditions, severe symptoms were observed in leaves and yield was reduced. Ten isolates were obtained from infected tissue by placing a lesion directly on a potato slice in a moist chamber (2). Mycelia grown on the potato slice were then transferred to rye agar. Identification of the pathogen was performed based on morphological characteristics, specifically, sporangiophores of P. infestans are compoundly branched and develop sympodially, with swellings at the points where sporangia were attached (1). Further confirmation was obtained by sequencing the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions (GenBank Accession Nos. EF173467-EF173476). Koch's postulates were completed in the laboratory by spray inoculating detached leaves of Cape gooseberry with a zoospore suspension obtained from each of the 10 isolates. Inoculum was prepared by flooding 10-day-old cultures with sterile distilled water to obtain a 104/ml sporangial suspension followed by zoospore induction at 4°C. Leaves were sprayed with this suspension, placed in moist chambers, and incubated at 20°C in the dark. Control leaves were sprayed with sterile distilled water. Two separate leaves were inoculated with each isolate. The pathogen was reisolated from leaf lesions in all cases. The period between infection and the appearance of symptoms ranged from 5 to 7 days. To our knowledge, this is the first report of P. infestans causing damage on Cape gooseberry in Colombia. Chemical control measures are to some extent successfully applied in most regions where solanaceous crops are grown in Colombia. Nevertheless, suitable disease management for Physalis peruviana has not been achieved and further studies on the epidemiology of the disease on this new host are needed. References: (1) D. C. Erwin and O. K. Ribeiro. Phytophthora Diseases Worldwide. The American Phytopathological Society. St. Paul, MN, 1996. (2) G. A. Forbes et al. Phytopathology 87:375, 1997.
First Report of Blumeriella jaapii Teleomorph on Wild Cherry in Italy
Authors: Annesi T. , Motta E. , Forti E. 
Published: May 2007

Leaf spot disease on wild cherry (Prunus avium L.) was frequently observed in plantations for timber production in central Italy. Acervuli and conidia of Phloeosporella (= Cylindrosporium) padi (Lib.) Arx were detected. Since the presence in Italy of its teleomorph, Blumeriella jaapii (Rehm) Arx (1), has never been reported, the life cycle of the pathogen was investigated. In the autumn of 1996, in some diseased leaves in different locations, microconidia were observed in the same acervuli that produced macroconidia. Also, in a plantation near Rome, fallen leaves with dark, stromatic spots were present. Leaf samples were put into plastic net bags and laid onto the ground under the trees, to be observed after overwintering in the field. In March, fully developed apothecia were present on the lower leaf surface, containing asci and ascospores that matched the description of B. jaapii. To verify the capability of the ascospores produced in nature to infect the host, overwintered leaf fragments with mature apothecia were fixed to the underside of the lids of petri dishes, above healthy cherry leaves laid upside down on moistened filter paper. Uninoculated, healthy leaves kept in petri dishes served as control. Dishes were incubated at room light and temperature conditions. The ascospores were readily discharged and dark spots with hypophyllous or amphigenous acervuli of P. padi developed on infected leaves 20 days later. No symptoms were present in the control leaves. In conclusion, B. jaapii can complete its life cycle in wild cherries in Italy. The possibility of spring infection by ascospores should be considered in disease management programs. Reference: (1) S. Kaszonyi. Acta Phytopathol. Acad. Sci. Hung. 1:93, 1966.
First Report of the Cymbidium Mosaic Potexvirus (CymMV) Infecting the Terrestrial Orchid Phaius tankervilliae in Costa Rica
Authors: Moreira L. , Villalobos W. , Hsu H. T. , Rodríguez-Cerezo E. , Rivera C. 
Published: May 2007

In 1996, plants of the terrestrial orchid Phaius tankervilliae from a nursery in the Central Valley of Costa Rica were observed with mild to severe foliar symptoms of chlorotic streak. No differences were observed in growth, bulb production, flowers, or flowering time between symptomatic and asymptomatic plants, except the symptomatic plants had earlier senescence. Occasionally, the flowers displayed symptoms of chlorosis and white rings in the sepals. Extracts from symptomatic leaves were concentrated by differential centrifugation and analyzed after sucrose gradients. Negative staining of fractions from gradients from symptomatic plants showed the presence of filamentous viral particles 500 by 17 nm. Purified particles contained a single major protein of about 28 kDa as estimated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) and a single RNA of about 7 kb, which is greater than the 6.2 kb reported (GenBank). These data suggest the presence of a potexvirus in symptomatic plants (1,2). In enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays, symptomatic plants reacted strongly with antiserum specific for Cymbidium mosaic potexvirus (CymMV). This is the first report of CymMV in P. tankervilliae in Costa Rica. References: (1) J. A. Frowd and J. H. Tremaine. Phytopathology 67:43, 1977. (2) H. T. Hsu et al. Phytopathology 82:491, 1992.
Recent Outbreak of “Mal de Rio Cuarto” Virus on Corn in Argentina
Authors: Lenardon S. L. , March G. J. , Nome S. F. , Ornaghi J. A. 
Published: May 2007

“Mal de Río Cuarto” (MRC) is the most important viral disease affecting corn in Argentina. Reovirus-like particles were observed in diseased plants (1,4) and were later serologically related to an isolate of maize rough dwarf virus (3), though this relationship was recently questioned (2). Based on estimates of the prevalence and severity of MRC and yield losses, government agencies, corn hybrid seed companies, and growers agreed that the worst epidemic in the country occurred during the 1996 to 1997 agricultural year. Approximately 300,000 ha of corn were affected by the disease and yield losses were estimated at $120 million. Affected areas included the central and southern Santa Fe, the central, northern, southeastern, and western Buenos Aires, and the eastern and southern (originally the endemic center of MRC in Río Cuarto County) parts of Córdoba. Virus infections were confirmed by double-antibody sandwich-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (DAS-ELISA) in root samples from each surveyed location, using an antiserum to MRC virus. The occurrence of MRC in non-endemic areas suggests an unusual phenological coincidence of high vector populations, abundant natural virus reservoirs, and susceptible stages in the crop. Most commercial hybrids surveyed were apparently susceptible to the virus, although some were tolerant. References: (1) O. E. Bradfute et al. Phytopathology 71:205, 1981. (2) C. Marzachi et al. Sem. Virol. 6:103, 1995. (3) R. G. Milne et al. Phytopathology 73:1290, 1983. (4) S. F. Nome et al. Phytopathol. Z. 101:7, 1981.