Molecular identification of fungi causing major diseases in the cultivated mushroom production facilities of Korkuteli District in Antalya

Abstract

The Korkuteli district of Antalya province is the leading cultivated mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) and compost producer in Turkey. Dry bubble, wet bubble, cobweb and green mold are the major fungal diseases causing serious losses of mushroom quality and yield in the district. This study was conducted to accurately identify the causal agents of these diseases from the isolates collected from the mushroom growing facilities of Korkuteli by ITS sequence and phylogenetic analysis and to compare them with the isolates from other regions of the world. The isolates of dry bubble were identified as Lecanicillium fungicola var. fungicola, the same variety responsible for frequent crop losses in Europe and Asia. The isolates of wet bubble were confirmed as Mycogone perniciosa and found closely related to European isolates. Cobweb isolates were determined as Cladobotryum mycophilum and grouped together with the isolates from different mushroom species cultivated in Europe and Asia. Green mold isolates were predominantly Trichoderma aggressivum f. aggressivum but f. europaeum was also present in the district as in Europe and North America. This study, for the first time, identifies the fungal agents of four important mushroom diseases from the Korkuteli district using molecular methods.