Abstract
Grey mould is a fungal disease responsible for important crop losses in most winemaking regions worldwide. In the present study, we developed immunological techniques for the detection and quantification of Botrytis cinerea conidia germinative material to obtain additional information about epidemic’s development on the vineyard. The study was carried out in a northwest Spain vineyard during the grapevine flowering in 2017 and 2018. An aerobiological study was developed for the identification and quantification of Botrytis cinerea conidia. For the immunological analysis, we developed a specific protein extraction protocol and a standard curve to analyze the cyclone-trap samples by an indirect PTA-ELISA. The airborne B. cinerea protein concentrations showed a similar variation pattern than the airborne conidia concentrations in the atmosphere of the vineyard. We recorded a total of 5673 B. cinerea spores in 2017, and 7562 spores in 2018. Regarding the airborne protein concentrations, we detected 9.692 ng/m3 in 2017 and 7.715 ng/m3 in 2018. Based on the statistical influence of the considered variables, we developed a predictive model able to explain 40% of protein data variability. The resulting methodology based on the combination of immunological techniques and aerobiological monitoring leads to a more reasoned treatment schedule consistent with real phytosanitary vineyard conditions and a more effective responsiveness against the increasing variability associated to climate change on the crop-pathogen system.
Highlights
Fungal diseases affect crop production in most winemaking regions worldwide
Our results contribute to the obtaining of new tools towards the detection of possible diseases in widely used crops such as Vitis vinifera, since this study is one of the first attempts in which immunological techniques were extrapolated to wine-growing field conditions
We detected a statistically-significant influence of different meteorological variables on atmospheric B. cinerea conidia concentrations and its possible relation with germination process
Summary
Fungal diseases affect crop production in most winemaking regions worldwide. Grey mould in grapevine, caused by Botrytis cinerea, is the third most reported disease in the European, North American and Australian vineyards, and the first cause of infection in South America, where the vine is irrigated [1]. The specific climatic conditions in the northwest Spain region, characterized by high relative humidity and moderate temperatures during the grapevine vegetative cycle favour the development of this fungal pathogen. This fungus has a wide humidity and temperature tolerance range, which together to its ability to survive in the dry leaves and mummified grapes of the previous season enhance a constant and predominant presence of B. cinerea in many winegrowing regions [2,3,4]. Besides meteorological conditions and the presence of the pathogen, a susceptible host stage is required for the development of a fungal plant disease. Infection of floral debris can act as inoculum sources for late infections that affect during the ripening of berries stage leading to important yield losses [9,10,11]
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