Imperfect Stage Research Articles

Mineral Nutrition In The Leaves of Cocculus hirsutus (L) Under Pathogenesis

The present research paper deals with mineral content in the leaves of Cocculus hirsutus(L) affected by powdery mildew fungus Oidium Sp. (Imperfect stage). The healthy and infected leaves were digested by tri-acid, prescribed by Toth et al., (1948) method. The digested sample was further subjected to Inductive Coupled Plasma Optical Emission spectroscopy. ICP-OES (Agilent 5800ICP-OES FEQ’S), MY 1523001 software version: 7.3.0.8799. Firm ware version: 3354 for analysis of mineral element. The infected leaf shows enhanced content in potassium, iron, manganese, copper, nickel, chromium, and aluminium element. On the Contrary, elements such as magnesium, sodium, calcium, lead, zinc, boron, strontium and thallium were reduced in their contents reflect a high metabolic activity during pathogenesis.

Revised Checklist of Powdery Mildews (Fungi: Erysiphales) from Nepal

The mycotaxa belonging to Erysiphales reported from Nepal since 1966, are revised based on 20 published papers. The recent moleculer and phyllogenetic analysis have done several changes in the nomenclature of several powdery mildew species reported earlier from Nepal. Some were erroneously reported, while some species have undergone synonyms. Near about eighteen species of Oidium (anamorphic: imperfect stage) reported earlier still need collections, examination and study are not incorporated here. The present checklist provides corrections to misidentified species with their current (authentic) or valid names and some additons have been made based on publications. The list also records three endemic species. So, the revision includes 13 genera and 53 species parasitic on 76 flowering plants gathered from different areas of Nepalese Himalayan belt.

Reading the Universe of Signs Well: Prospects for Partnering Theosemiotic with a Christian Semiotic Theology

Reading the Universe of Signs <i>Well</i>: Prospects for Partnering Theosemiotic with a Christian Semiotic Theology

Euphorbia hirta L. a new host record of Oidium species from Nepal

Euphorbia hirta L. which was found parasitized by the Oidium species (imperfect stage of Erysiphales), on the leaves, is considered as a new host record for the fungus. It was collected in the promises of Nepal Academy of Science and Technology (NAST), Khumaltar, Nepal. The description of the fungus and distribution is provided here with.

Occurrence of Southern Blight Caused by Athelia rolfsii on Pinellia ternata in China and Worldwide

Pinellia ternata (Thunb.) Breit. is an herbaceous plant (family Araceae) native to China. The tuber of P. ternata is used in traditional Chinese herbal medicine as an antiemetic and antitussive (Marki et al. 1987). In June 2018, a soilborne disease on P. ternata plants was initially observed in Zhongxiang City (31°17′N, 112°58′E), central Hubei Province, China. The incidence of the disease was 25 to 30% in two commercial fields, and the total area affected by the disease was approximately 200 ha. Symptomatic plants initially had small, water-soaked, sunken lesions on the stems near the soil line that developed symptoms typical of southern blight. As the disease progressed, white hyphae were observed on infected stem lesions in the presence of abundant moisture. Numerous tan-to-brown, spherical sclerotia developed on the infected basal stem and on soil surfaces around the infected plants. After 1 month, plant foliage became wilted, followed by a complete collapse of the plant. Sclerotia from symptomatic basal stems of plants were surface disinfested in 2% sodium hypochlorite for 1 min, washed thrice with sterilized distilled water, air dried, and placed on potato dextrose agar (PDA). The cultures were incubated at 28 ± 1°C in the dark. Numerous globoid sclerotia formed on PDA after 12 days of growth. The sclerotia, 2 to 4 mm in diameter, were white at first and became melanized, turning brown with age. The white mycelium formed typical clamp connections after 5 days of growth. Aerial fungal growth was composed of many narrow hyphae 3 to 8 μm wide. The isolate was identified as Athelia rolfsii on the basis of mycelial and sclerotial characteristics (Punja and Damiani 1996). To confirm the identification, the strain NB1 was chosen for DNA sequencing. The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of rDNA was amplified using the ITS1 and ITS4 primers (White et al. 1990) and sequenced, and the resulting sequences of 650 bp were deposited in GenBank (accession no. MN071107). BLAST analysis of the sequences showed 99.8% identity to A. rolfsii (imperfect stage of Sclerotium rolfsii) (MN328049.1). Moreover, the isolate was further identified to the species level as A. rolfsii by amplifying RPB2 gene sequences (accession no. MN509436) and EF1-α gene sequences (accession no. MN509438), which also exhibited 100% similarities with A. rolfsii (JF267830 and JF267817) (Remesal et al. 2013). Based on morphological and molecular characteristics, the fungus was identified as A. rolfsii. NB1 was chosen to fulfill Koch’s postulates; 10 healthy 30-day-old P. ternata seedlings were planted in plastic pots with sterilized mixture of peat moss and vermiculite (3:1). Each seeding was inoculated with one sclerotium, which was placed on the soil surface against the stem of the plant. Three noninoculated plants served as controls. The inoculated and noninoculated plants then were placed in a greenhouse at 28 ± 1°C, with ambient lighting and relative humidity of 70%. By 10 days after inoculation, all inoculated plants showed symptoms identical to those observed in the field, and no symptoms were observed on control plants. The fungus was reisolated from the inoculated plants and identified by the above method. The experiment was repeated thrice with similar results. To our knowledge, this is the first report of southern blight caused by A. rolfsii on P. ternata in China and worldwide. There is a need to develop effective management measures to reduce the occurrence of this disease.

First Report of Powdery Mildew Caused by Podosphaera xanthii on Ixeridium dentatum in Korea

Ixeridium dentatum (Thunb. ex Mori) Tzvelev, known as toothed ixeridium, belonging to the family Asteraceae, is native to Korea and East Asia. In Korea, it has been used as a traditional herbal medicine for the treatment of hepatitis, indigestion, pneumonia, tumors, and hyperlipidemia. I. dentatum is commercially cultivated in some areas (over 100 ha) of Korea. In October 2017, symptoms of powdery mildew were observed on over 60% of the leaves and stems of I. dentatum plants in a garden at Chonnam National University located in Gwangju, Korea. Disease symptoms included white powdery colonies on the upper leaf surfaces and stems with or without necrosis. Appressoria of the fungus were indistinct to slightly nipple shaped. Conidiophores were cylindrical, 90.3 to 190.5 × 10.5 to 12.5 μm. Foot cells of conidiophores were 45.2 to 65.1 × 10.4 to 12.5 μm, cylindrical, or slightly constricted at the base, followed by zero to three shorter cells, forming conidia in chains. Conidia were ellipsoid to oval, 28.8 to 38.4 × 16.5 to 21.3 μm. Chasmothecia were not observed. Morphologically, the isolate was consistent with the description of Podosphaera xanthii (Castagne) U. Braun & N. Shishkoff (Braun and Cook 2012; Lee 2013; Meeboon and Takamatsu 2015). Genomic DNA was extracted directly from the mycelia and conidia using a gDNA prep kit (Solgent, Daejeon, Korea). The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the rDNA of two isolates was amplified using the primers ITS1 and ITS4 as described by Lee (2015). A BLASTn search of the ITS sequences against the NCBI database indicated that the isolates EML-IDPW1726 and EML-IDPW1727 (GenBank accession nos. MG719995 and MG719996, respectively) matched P. xanthii (GenBank accession no. KY388505), with 100% (444/444 bp) sequence homology. Phylogenetic analyses based on the ITS rDNA indicated that EML-IDPW1726 and EML-IDPW1727 isolates were identical to P. xanthii. Therefore, the causal pathogen was identified as P. xanthii based on the morphology of its imperfect stage and molecular analyses. The pathogenicity of the biotrophic fungus was demonstrated by gently pressing the infected leaves onto healthy leaves of I. dentatum (Lee 2013). Plants were maintained in a greenhouse at 23 ± 2°C. Seven days after inoculation, symptoms similar to those observed under natural conditions developed on the inoculated leaves of I. dentatum plants. The fungus on inoculated leaves was morphologically identical to that first observed. Powdery mildew of I. dentatum caused by Golovinomyces cichoracearum and P. fuliginea has also been reported previously from Japan (Farr and Rossman 2017). P. xanthii (synonyms: P. fusca, Sphaerotheca fuliginea, and S. fusca) has been reported to cause powdery mildew on Ixeridium spp. (synonyms: Ixeris, Paraixeris, Youngia, Chondrilla, Prenanthes, and Lactuca [The Plant List 2013]) under the name of Sphaerotheca humuli var. fuliginea. To our knowledge, this is the first record of powdery mildew caused by P. xanthii on I. dentatum in Korea. The occurrence of powdery mildew on I. dentatum could pose a serious threat to the health of this plant, resulting in death and severe yield reduction.

Occurrence of powdery mildew caused by Erysiphe betae on chard [Beta vulgaris L. subsp. cicla (L.) Koch] in Greece

Chard [Beta vulgaris L. subsp. cicla (L.) Koch] is a tall leafy green vegetable with a thick, crunchy stalk, which is one of the most popular vegetables in the Mediterranean region. In late September 2016, a severe outbreak of powdery mildew on the chard cultivar Verde a Costa’ Argentata 2 occurred in an isolated 0.1 ha field in the Heraklio area, Crete, Greece, at an incidence of approximately 90%. Initial disease symptoms included small, scattered, circular, white, dust-like colonies of powdery mildew mainly on adaxial surfaces of older leaves. As the disease progressed, white mycelia covered the whole of the foliar parts, and the plant took on a dusty white appearance. No chasmothecia were found on collected samples. Based on morphological characteristics of the imperfect stage, pathogenicity and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) analysis, the pathogen was identified as Erysiphe betae (Vaňha) Weltzien. To our knowledge, this is the first report of E. betae infections on chard in Greece.

Development of an environmental performance indicator framework to evaluate management effectiveness for Jiaozhou Bay Coastal Wetland Special Marine Protected Area, Qingdao, China

The management effectiveness of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) has gained more and more attentions with an increasing research interest worldwide. An Environmental Performance Indicator (EPI) framework is considered to be a good means for MPAs' management planning and assessment. As a peculiar type of MPAs with Chinese characteristics, Special Marine Protected Area (SMPA) is still at an imperfect stage in terms of its operation and management in China. There is a scarcity of research evidence of SMPAs' management and its effectiveness evaluation as well. Focusing on this relatively new research field, this paper aims to establish a conceptual model and an operable EPI framework for examining SMPA's day-to-day management and evaluating its management effects, using Jiaozhou Bay Coastal Wetland SMPA (JZBCWSMPA), the first SMPA of Qingdao, as a case study. The evaluation model and indicator framework are developed via a comprehensive approach taking basic management ideas, international well-known model, widely used indicator frameworks and specific features of the study area into consideration. An expert ranking procedure is also conducted to aggregate the initial indicators. The innovative features of this framework are described, such as it is not only a systematic framework incorporating various kinds of indicators but also specifically practicable for the study area. It is expected that the research outcomes will provide technical supports for JZBCWSMPA's management effectiveness evaluation (MEE) and scientific references for decision-making and guiding for Qingdao's social-economic sustainable development.

Sanghuangporus pilatii, a new combination, revealed as European relative of Asian medicinal fungi

Phellinus pilatii Černý (1968: 2) was first described from the southern part of Czechoslovakia (now southeastern Czech Republic in the South Moravia region). The species grows on both the living trees and dead wood of Populus alba and P. × canescens, and is characterized by an imperfect stage that produces chlamydospores on scars left by fallen branches on living trees. Basidiomes later develop in the same place as (or on top of) the asexual structures, in tree cavities and on fallen dead trees. The species is distributed throughout south and southeast Europe and warmer parts of Central Europe. The species has been recorded in southeastern Czech Republic, southern Slovakia, Hungary, Italy, Bulgaria, Italy, Romania, countries of the former Yugoslavia and the European part of Turkey (Bernicchia 1995, Denchev and Assyov 2010, Černý 1968, Doğan et al. 2005, Ryvarden and Gilbertson 1994).

The occcurrence in Poland of Helminthosporium pedicellatum Henry, the imperfect stage of Trichometrasphaeria pedicellata Nelson

In the summer of 1967 colonies of a fungus from the genus &lt;i&gt;Helminthosporium&lt;/i&gt; whose microscopic characters corresponded to the description of &lt;i&gt;Helminthosporium pedicellatum&lt;/i&gt; Henry were isolated from the youngest wheat roots. There has so far been no mention of this species in Polish mycological literature.

Observations on the occurrence of Erysiphales on cucumbers in Poland

In the years 1974-79 in Skierniewice and in 12 other places &lt;i&gt;Erysiphe cichoracearum &lt;/i&gt;DC (imperfect stage) was observed on cucumbers in 1979 both &lt;i&gt;A. cichoraceum&lt;/i&gt; and &lt;i&gt;Sphaerotheca fuliginea&lt;/i&gt; were found in Skierniewice, Zielonka and Gołębiewo. Then were distinguished in the conidial stage mainly on the basis of differences in conidial germination and the presence or absence of fibrous bodies, and in the perfect stage on the basis of the number of asci in peridia and the number of spores per ascus.

Effect of Combination between Bioagents and Antioxidants on Management of Tomato Powdery Mildew

Isolation of microorganisms occurring on the phyllopane of tomato leaves yielded many Basillus and Trichoderma strains. The isolated Bacillus spp. were purified and identified as B. chitinosporus, B. megaterium, B. pumilus, B. subtilis and B. thuringiensis and the isolated Trichoderma spp. were, T. album, T. hamatum, T. koningii, T. harzianum and T.veredi. All the tested Bacillus and Trichoderma strains caused significant inhibition to the germinated conidia of Leveillula taurica (imperfect stage = Oidiopsis taurica) the causal of tomato powdery mildew compared with control treatment. In addition, B. thuringiensis B. subtilis and B. chitinosporus were the most efficient bacteria in this regard and T. harzianum and T. veredi were the most efficient fungi. The inducer resistance chemicals (IRCs) bion, chitosan, humic acid, salicylic acid and zinc sulphate resulted in significant reduction to the germinated conidia of the causal fungus compared with control treatment. This reduction was gradually increased by increasing the tested concentration. In plastic house experiments, spraying tomato plants with the tested bioagents B. thuringiensis and T. harzianum and the IRC salicylic acid resulted in significant reduction to powdery mildew severity during 2012/2013 and 2013/ 2014 growing seasons. Spraying of the bioagents B.thuringiensis and T. harzianum and the IRC salicylic acid, each alone or in different combinations, resulted in significant reduction to the severity of the disease with significant increase to the produced fruit yield. Furthermore, spraying any of these compounds alone was of less effect in this regard compared with spraying their combinations. However, the fungicide Sumi-8 was the superior in this regard, being 3.7 % disease severity and fruit yield 16.2 k g. / plant followed by the mixture of the three treatments, being 4.6% disease severity and fruit yield 13.7 kg. / plant. The three oxidative-reductive enzymes, i.e. PAL, PO and PPO were greatly increased in the leaves of all sprayed treatments compared with control treatment. In addition, plants sprayed with salicylic acid recorded the highest activity of the three enzymes followed by that sprayed with B. thuringiensis then T. harzianum. Meanwhile, untreated leaves (control) recorded the lowest activity followed by that sprayed with Sumi-8.

A Second Spore Stage Confirmed for Apioplagiostoma populi, the Causal Agent of Bronze Leaf Disease of Populus in Minnesota.

Bronze leaf disease (BLD) affects several Populus species in North America but is particularly damaging to hybrids in section Populus (4). BLD, caused by the fungus Apioplagiostoma populi (syn. Plagiostoma populi) described by Cash and Waterman (1), takes its name from the characteristic dark purple to brown pigmentation of infected leaves. A. populi has not been cultured on artificial media either from diseased tissues or cast ascospores. An anamorph has not been conclusively identified but spores from blister-like acervuli on symptomatic leaves have been suggested to function as spermatia (3). In an attempt to describe the imperfect stage of A. populi, collections of diseased leaves of P. alba × sieboldii and P. alba × grandidentata'Crandon' growing in a plantation near Rosemount, MN, were made on September 14, 2011 (leaves attached to shoots, rolled inward), October 12, 2011 (leaves attached or on the ground, tightly rolled inward), and November 1, 2011 (most leaves on the ground), and examined in the laboratory for fungal development. Leaf laminae from the September 14 collection were uniformly covered with erumpent, subcuticular blister-like acervuli on the adaxial surface only, containing unicellular, colorless spores ranging in size from 2.2 to 10.0 × 2.0 to 5.0 μm (mean 3.6 × 6.2 μm) (n = 100). Attempts to germinate and obtain cultures from these spores on common artificial media were unsuccessful. On leaves collected October 12, the blister-like acervuli were predominantly empty or releasing spores and immature perithecia of A. populi were present. Leaves collected on November 1 contained immature perithecia but were heavily colonized by surface saprophytic fungi and no intact blister-like acervuli were present. DNA was extracted from bulked samples of spores removed from the blister-like acervuli in leaves from multiple trees collected on September 14 using the DNeasy Plant Mini Kit (Qiagen Sciences, Germantown, MD). The internal transcribed spacer (ITS2) region of rDNA was PCR amplified and sequenced with primers ITS3 and ITS4. BLASTn searches revealed that sequences from three independent bulked samples were homologous (99% identity, 353 of 355 nucleotides) to A. populi from isolated perithecia (GenBank Accession No. GU205341) (2). The inability of the spores to germinate, the timing of their development and release, and the tight, inward roll of infected leaves facilitating their spread across the upper leaf surface suggest that these spores function as spermatia in the life cycle of A. populi and the blister-like acervuli in which they develop are spermogonia.

Precision, Consistency and Completeness in Early-Modern Playbook Manuscripts: The Evidence from Thomas of Woodstock and John a Kent and John a Cumber

According to William B. Long, New Bibliographers, such as W. W. Greg and his followers, were wrong to assume that early modern play manuscripts fall into essentially two categories: untidy authorial (or ‘foul’) papers with inconsistent speech prefixes and imperfect stage directions, and tidied-up promptbooks from which such irregularities have been eliminated. Long argued that in fact untidy authorial manuscripts could be used to run performances, and hence that we cannot determine the nature of the manuscript underlying an early print edition from the precision, completeness or accuracy of its speech prefixes and stage directions. Long's attack on this aspect of New Bibliographical thinking was influential in the widespread abandonment of New Bibliography since the 1990s. The present essay revaluates, in the light of subsequent discoveries, the logic of Long's argument and the manuscript evidence upon which it was based. Long's key inferences from theatre-historical data are rejected and the manuscripts are found to contain conflicting evidence that is no better explained by Long's new orthodoxy than by the old one it replaced.

Sydowia polyspora associated with current season needle necrosis (CSNN) on true fir ( Abies spp.)

Current season needle necrosis (CSNN) has been a serious foliage disorder on true fir Christmas trees and bough material in Europe and North America for more than 25 y. Approximately 2–4 weeks after bud break, needles develop chlorotic spots or bands that later turn necrotic. The symptoms have been observed on noble fir ( Abies procera), Nordmann fir ( A. nordmanniana) and grand fir ( A. grandis) on both continents. CSNN was reported as a physiological disorder with unknown aetiology from USA, Denmark, and Ireland, but was associated with the fungus Kabatina abietis in Germany, Austria and Norway. In 2007, a fungus that morphologically resembled K. abietis was isolated from symptomatic needle samples from Nordmann fir from Austria, Denmark, Germany, Norway, and USA. Sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of ribosomal DNA of these cultures, plus a K. abietis reference culture from Germany (CBS 248.93), resulted in Hormonema dematioides, the imperfect stage of Sydowia polyspora, and thus the taxonomy is further discussed. Inoculation tests on Nordmann fir seedlings and transplants with isolates of S. polyspora from all five countries resulted in the development of CSNN symptoms. In 2009, S. polyspora was also isolated from symptomatic needles from Nordmann fir collected in Slovakia.

Ophiostomatoid fungi transported by Ips sexdentatus (Coleoptera; Scolytidae) in Pinus pinaster in NW Spain

Ips sexdentatus (Coleoptera; Scolytidae) is one of the main vectors of ophiostomatoid blue stain fungi that can cause mortality of healthy conifers. For this reason, our objective was to identify the fungal species carried by this bark beetle in Maritime pine (Pinus pinaster) in north-western Spain. We collected insects from naturally infected pines placed them on malt extract agar (MEA) and left to walk freely on culture plates. Plant tissues (phloem and xylem) from adult pines were cultivated in moist chambers and also on MEA. At the same time, we inoculated pine logs with living insects in the laboratory. Four ophiostomatoid fungi appeared: Ophiostoma ips, Ophiostoma brunneo-ciliatum, Ceratocystiopsis minuta and Ophiostoma sp., as well as Graphium and Sporothrix imperfect stages. Moreover there were seven saprophytic species: Penicillium sp., Trichoderma sp., Verticillium sp., Mucor sp., Aspergillus niger, Gliocladium viride and Scopulariopsis brevicaulis, and the pathogenic Ophiostoma ips. The fructification percentage of the ophiostomatoid species was low, however; its imperfect stage Sporothrix/Hyalorhinocladiella produced high quantity of conidiophores.

Studies on Diaporthe eres as a New Pathogen of Peach Trees in Greece

Phomopsis sp., the imperfect stage of the genus Diaporthe, is an increasingly common fungal pathogen of peach (Prunus persica). This study is the first report of the occurrence of a shoot blight and canker disease of peach in Greece caused by the fungus Diaporthe eres. The pathogen caused distinct cankers with abundant gumming on shoots of peach and nectarine trees. The rate of development of D. eres in vitro was reduced as temperatures increased from 25 to 30°C or decreased from 25 to 15°C, and was totally inhibited at 35 and 10°C. Storage at 10°C of peach fruit inoculated with D. eres controlled the development of fruit rot. Pathogenicity tests showed that 27 peach and nectarine cultivars grown in Imathia Prefecture, Greece, were equally susceptible to D. eres. The fungicides thiophanate methyl, carbendazim, tebuconazole, iprodione, and the mixture of cyprodinil:fludioxonil were evaluated against the development of D. eres and the disease symptoms. Thiophanate methyl, carbendazim, and tebuconazole significantly inhibited the growth of D. eres whereas iprodione and the mixture of cyprodinil:fludioxonil were less effective in inhibiting mycelial growth and disease symptoms. The sensitivity of 24 isolates of D. eres to carbendazim, thiophanate methyl, and tebuconazole was also tested. The results showed that most of the isolates used were sensitive to these fungicides, with some isolates showing a level of insensitivity. In general, the disease caused by D. eres could be a threat for peach cultivation in Greece and its management should be investigated in the field.

Improving optical bench radius measurements using stage error motion data

We describe the application of a vector-based radius approach to optical bench radius measurements in the presence of imperfect stage motions. In this approach, the radius is defined using a vector equation and homogeneous transformation matrix formulism. This is in contrast to the typical technique, where the displacement between the confocal and cat's eye null positions alone is used to determine the test optic radius. An important aspect of the vector-based radius definition is the intrinsic correction for measurement biases, such as straightness errors in the stage motion and cosine misalignment between the stage and displacement gauge axis, which lead to an artificially small radius value if the traditional approach is employed. Measurement techniques and results are provided for the stage error motions, which are then combined with the setup geometry through the analysis to determine the radius of curvature for a spherical artifact. Comparisons are shown between the new vector-based radius calculation, traditional radius computation, and a low uncertainty mechanical measurement. Additionally, the measurement uncertainty for the vector-based approach is determined using Monte Carlo simulation and compared to experimental results.

Powdery mildew of ornamental species caused by Oidiopsis haplophylli in Brazil

Oidiopsis haplophylli (syn. Oidiopsis sicula) was identified as the causal agent of powdery mildew diseases occurring on five ornamental species in Brazil. This disease was observed in plastic house-grown lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum: Gentianaceae), in nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus: Tropaeolaceae) cultivated under open field conditions and in greenhouse-grown calla lily (Zantedeschia aethiopica: Araceae), impatiens (Impatiens balsamina: Balsaminaceae) and balloon plant (Asclepias physocarpa: Asclepiadaceae). Typical disease symptoms consisted of chlorotic areas on the upper leaf surface corresponding to a fungal colony in the abaxial surface. With the disease progression, these chlorotic areas eventually turned to necrotic (brown) lesions. Fungi morphology on all hosts was similar to that described for the imperfect stage of Leveillula taurica (O. haplophylli). The Koch's postulates were fulfilled by inoculating symptom-free plants via leaf-to-leaf contact with fungal colonies. Additional inoculations using an isolate of O. haplophylli from sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum) demonstrated that it is pathogenic to all five species belonging to distinct botanical families, indicating lack of host specialization. This is the first formal report of a powdery mildew disease on lisianthus, calla lilly, impatiens and nasturtium in Brazil. It is, to our knowledge, the first report of O. haplophyllii infecting A. physocarpa, extending the host range of this atypical powdery mildew-inducing fungus. This disease might become important on these ornamental crops especially in protected cultivation and also under field conditions in hot and dry areas of Brazil.

Gummy stem blight of balsam pear caused by Didymella bryoniae and its anamorph Phoma cucurbitacearum

Gummy stem blight of balsam pear found in the Kanto district and in the Hokkaido Prefecture was demonstrated to be caused by Didymella bryoniae (Auerswald) Rehm based on inoculation experiments, molecular analysis, and morphological identification of the pathogenic fungus. This fungus was also pathogenic to related plants belonging to Cucurbitaceae. The imperfect stage of the fungus was identified as Phoma cucurbitacearum (Fr.: Fr.) Sacc. based on morphological similarities.