Diversity and pathogenicity of pestalotioid fungi associated with blueberry plants in Portugal, with description of three novel species of Neopestalotiopsis

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2021

Authors

Santos, J (Author) Other; Hilario, S (Author) Other; Pinto, G (Author) Other; Alves, A (Author) Other

Journal

The Journal is awaiting validation by the Administrative Services.

Title: EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF PLANT PATHOLOGY

Vol. 162

Pages: 539-555

ISSN: 0929-1873

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 0 Citations

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Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00V-R02

DOI: 10.1007/s10658-021-02419-0

Abstract (EN): Blueberries (Vaccinium corymbosum) have been increasingly cultivated in Portugal. Although blueberry is known to be susceptible to twig blight and dieback caused by pestalotioid fungi, there is still scarce information regarding this issue. To bridge this gap, a survey on blueberry plantations in Portugal was carried out to assess the diversity of pestalotioid fungi associated with symptomatic blueberry plants. A collection of 51 fungal isolates was characterized by multilocus sequence analyses of the rDNA internal transcribed spacer region (ITS), translation elongation factor 1-alpha (tef1-alpha) and beta-tubulin (tub2). The phylogenetic analyses revealed the presence of Pestalotiopsis australis, P. biciliata, P. chamaeropis, Neopestalotiopsis rosae and three novel species described as Neopestalotiopsis scalabiensis, N. vaccinii and N. vacciniicola. The new species were fully characterized based on their morphology and temperature growth requirements. The pathogenicity trials carried out on cultivar "Duke" revealed that all isolates tested were pathogenic to blueberry plants, with N. rosae being the most aggressive species. This study provides the first report of P. chamaeropis, P. biciliata and P. australis associated with blueberry dieback and twig blight symptoms in Portugal and worldwide. Additionally, N. rosae is also newly reported from Portugal. This survey disclosed the occurrence of several pestalotioid species, which may represent a threat to Portuguese blueberry plantations.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 17