Typical Anthracnose Symptoms Research Articles

First Report of Colletotrichum queenslandicum on Persian Lime Causing Leaf Anthracnose in the United States

Colletotrichum fungi cause anthracnose and post-harvest rots on a wide range of plant species resulting in serious economic losses. In April 2017, leaf samples showing typical anthracnose symptoms of circular to oval brown spots and shot hole appearance in mature leaves where center of leaf spot fell out were collected from a Persian lime tree (Citrus x latifolia). The tree is located in a residential property in Corpus Christi, TX. Four tiny pieces (1-2 mm) of infected tissue from the lesions were surface sterilized for 2 min in 70% ethanol followed by 1 min in 3% sodium hypochlorite, plated on potato dextrose agar (Sigma-Aldrich), and incubated at 24 ±1°C. The four isolates obtained showed grey mycelium, numerous acervuli with dark bases, and orange conidial ooze. The conidia were hyaline, cylindrical with rounded ends, occasionally slightly constricted near center and appressoria were globose. Perithecia were not seen on either leaves or in cultures. DNA sequences were generated from seven loci known t...

Characterization of Colletotrichum truncatum from papaya, pepper and physic nut based on phylogeny, morphology and pathogenicity

Colletotrichum truncatum (syn. C. capsici) has been identified as the causal agent of anthracnose on various hosts, predominantly pepper (Capsicum spp.) plants. The aim of this study was to determine whether C. truncatum isolates infecting papaya, pepper and physic nut in southeastern Mexico are morphologically, genetically and pathogenically different, in order to improve disease management strategies. A total of 113 C. truncatum isolates collected from five producer states were subjected to phenotypic characterization and divided into six different morphological groups. These morphological traits and the location of the isolates were used to select a subset of 20 isolates for further studies. Differences in the pathogenicity of the isolates were tested with a cross‐inoculation assay using pepper, papaya and physic nut. The pathogenicity tests revealed that all isolates could infect the three hosts and produce typical anthracnose symptoms, indicating a lack of host specificity for this species and therefore its pathogenic potential on other plants. Phylogenetic analysis using internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and glyceraldehyde 3‐phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) sequences of the C. truncatum isolates from this study and reference strains was performed, grouping the isolates into a monophyletic clade. This study reports for the first time the characterization of C. truncatum causing anthracnose disease on three different hosts in Mexico.

First Report of Anthracnose Caused by Colletotrichum gloeosporioides on Kiwifruit (Actinidia chinensis) in China

China is the leading kiwifruit producer in the world (Belrose 2016). In late September of 2016, typical anthracnose symptoms were observed on young and mature leaves of kiwifruit cultivar ‘Hongyang’ in Taishun County, Wenzhou City, Zhejiang Province and Liupanshui City, Guizhou Province, China. The disease symptoms began as, irregularly-shaped lesions, then developed into brown or black spots on infected leaves. By the later stages, the centers of the lesions had turned gray and the edges were dark brown (Fig. 1A-B). Twenty trees of ten kiwifruit orchards in each city has been investigated, approximately 20% of trees exhibited typical anthracnose symptoms. To isolate the pathogen, 5 mm2 pieces of symptomatic tissue of ten infected leaves were surface-disinfected for 90 s in 1% sodium hypochlorite then in 75% ethanol for 30 s, rinsed three times in sterile water, plated on acidified potato dextrose agar (PDA), and incubated at 25°C with a 12/12-h light/dark cycle. Three hyphal tips from the growing edge of...

First Report of Colletotrichum acutatum Causing Anthracnose on Olives in Albania.

Olive trees (Olea europaea L.) are among the most important fruit tree crops grown in Albania, covering an estimated 8% of the arable land of this country. The highest amount of olive production in Albania is concentrated in the coastal districts of Fier, Berat, Elbasan, Lezha, Tirana, Kruja and Vlora, all with Mediterranean climate conditions. Anthracnose is the main disease of olive fruit caused by different Colletotrichum spp. primarily belonging to two complexes, C. acutatum sensu lato (s.l.) and C. gloeosporioides s.l. (Cacciola et al. 2012; Schena et al. 2014.). On July 2018, field observations of about 50 olive trees in the Ishull Shengjin Lezhe Region (54% prevalence), 1 km away from the coast showed severe symptoms of mummified olive fruits in about 20 to 40% disease incidence and 30% disease severity of the Italian table olive cv. Frantoio trees resulting in premature fruit drop or mummification. The causal agent was isolated directly from infected fruits on potato dextrose agar and Rose Bengal nutrient media. Microscopic examinations of five single spore isolated fungal colonies showed acervuli with typical conidia of the genus Colletotrichum that were aseptate, straight, hyaline, subcylindrical with rounded ends and 12.3 to 22.1 µm long (mean = 17.4 µm) and 2.5 to 7.3 µm wide (mean = 5.9 µm) (n= 50 conidia) (Damm et al. 2012). To identify the fungal species, DNA from two single-spore isolates (Col-3-ALB and Col-9-ALB) isolated from fruits was extracted, and six genes were amplified (ITS, GAPDH, CHS-1, HIS3, ACT, and TUB2) using the primers reviewed in Damm et al. (2012). PCR products were sequenced, and BLAST analysis showed 100% identity to C. acutatum for both isolates (GenBank accession nos. for Col-9-ALB MT218337 [ITS1-5.8-ITS2], MT274748 [CHS-1], MT274749 [HIS3], MT274750 [GAPDH], MT274751 [TUB2], and MT274752 [ACT]). Phylogenetic analysis using the concatenated sequences of Col-9-ALB, the type species of C. acutatum (112996), a previously identified published Greek C. acutatum isolate (O9) and three C. godetiae strains confirmed the identification of Col-9-ALB as C. acutatum. Pathogenicity tests were performed in the laboratory to confirm the ability of C. acutatum isolates to cause disease on olive drupes. Fruits were surface disinfected with 0.1% NaClO for 3 min and rinsed with ddH2O. Artificial inoculations with the two above isolates were performed by spraying 24 olive fruits per isolate cv. Kalamon (eight olive fruits per replication) with a spore suspension (106 conidia/ml). Olive fruits sprayed with sterilized water served as untreated control. After inoculation, olive fruits were placed in closed sterile plastic boxes and kept at 26°C with a 12-h photoperiod. First rot symptoms and formation of acervuli by the pathogen were initiated 3 days after inoculation. Eight days post-inoculation, all treatments exhibited typical anthracnose symptoms similar to those observed in olive orchards (extensive fruit rot). To fulfil Koch's postulates, C. acutatum was re-isolated from 10 random symptomatic olive fruits/isolate and their identity was confirmed from all samples. To our knowledge, this is the first report of C. acutatum causing fruit rot on olive trees in Albania. It is important to further study the epidemiology for the disease under local climate conditions and on different olive cultivars in order to develop effective management strategies for this very destructive disease of olive.

FIRST REPORT OF ANTHRACNOSE ON CHERIMOYA CAUSED BY COLLETOTRICHUM TROPICALE IN CUBA

Cherimoya (Annona cherimola Mill.) fruits with preharvest anthracnose symptoms were collected in Province Artemisa, Cuba, in April 2015. Necrotic, sunken lesions with orange spore masses were observed on 71% of the fruits. Single spore isolations on potato dextrose agar (PDA) were initially white and became light gray with scant aerial mycelium and abundant orange conidiomata in concentric rings. Conidia were 12.5-17.5 × 5-6.5 µm, subcylindrical with rounded ends, aseptate and hyaline, morphological characters consistent with Colletotrichum tropicale (Rojas et al., 2010). To confirm pathogen identity, the ITS region, the Apn2-Mat1-2 intergenic spacer and partial mating type (Mat1-2) gene (ApMat) and a partial sequence of the glutamine synthetase gene (GS) were amplified and sequenced (European Nucleotide Archive Accession Nos. LT853592, LT853593 and LT853594, respectively). A phylogenetic analysis using Bayesian inference with published ApMat, GS, and ITS data for Colletotrichum species in the C. gloeosporioides complex (Jayawardena et al., 2016) placed our isolate INIFAT 4144 in the C. tropicale clade. For assessing pathogenicity, five detached cherimoya fruits were inoculated with a suspension of 105 spores/ml by depositing 30 µl droplets of the suspension on the surfaces of nonwounded and wounded fruits with a sterile needle. Control fruits received sterile water. Typical anthracnose symptoms were observed in all inoculated fruits after 3 to 5 days. Control fruits presented no symptoms. The pathogen was consistently re-isolated from the infected fruits. To our knowledge, this is the first report of C. tropicale in Cuba and the first report on A. cherimola.

Detection of tomato anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum truncatum in India

Tomato fruits with typical anthracnose symptoms of small, sunken, dark brown lesions were observed in the farmers fields in Jalna, Maharashtra, India. Based on morphological and molecular characterization, the fungus was identified as Colletotrichum truncatum, which is reported for the first time causing anthracnose on tomato in India.

First Report of Anthracnose on Peach Fruit Caused by Colletotrichum acutatum in China

HomePlant DiseaseVol. 101, No. 9First Report of Anthracnose on Peach Fruit Caused by Colletotrichum acutatum in China PreviousNext DISEASE NOTES OPENOpen Access licenseFirst Report of Anthracnose on Peach Fruit Caused by Colletotrichum acutatum in ChinaY. X. Du, H. C. Ruan, N. N. Shi, L. Gan, X. J. Yang, Y. L. Dai, and F. R. ChenY. X. DuSearch for more papers by this author, H. C. RuanSearch for more papers by this author, N. N. ShiSearch for more papers by this author, L. GanSearch for more papers by this author, X. J. YangSearch for more papers by this author, Y. L. DaiSearch for more papers by this author, and F. R. ChenSearch for more papers by this authorAffiliationsAuthors and Affiliations Y. X. Du H. C. Ruan N. N. Shi L. Gan X. J. Yang Y. L. Dai F. R. Chen , Institute of Plant Protection, Fujian Academy of Agricultural Science, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350013, China; and Fujian Key Laboratory for Monitoring and Integrated Management of Crop Pests, Fuzhou, Fujian, 350013, China. Published Online:27 Jun 2017https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-11-16-1568-PDNAboutSectionsSupplemental ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmailWechat Peach (Prunus persica L.) is an economically important fruit crop in most parts of China. Anthracnose of peach fruit causes significant production and economic losses worldwide every year. In South Carolina, anthracnose is caused mainly by species of the genus Colletotrichum, e.g., C. gloeosporioides, C. acutatum, and C. truncatum (Bernstein et al. 1995; Hu et al. 2015). In August 2012, 2013, and 2014, typical symptoms of anthracnose were observed on peach fruits (Baifeng) near maturity in commercial orchards in Ningde, Fujian Province, China. Initially, symptoms appeared as small, light brown, water-soaked, slightly sunken lesions, circular to semicircular spots. As infection continued, the lesions expanded and became dark brown to black and produced wrinkled concentric rings and orange conidial masses in the center of the lesions under high humidity. Ten peach fruits with a single lesion were collected, surface sterilized for 1 min in 0.5% sodium hypochlorite, and rinsed with sterile distilled water. Then 5 × 5 mm necrotic tissue was placed on acidified potato dextrose agar (APDA) and incubated at 25°C for 3 days. The pure cultures were obtained by single conidia isolation. Ten isolates produced pale gray, dense aerial hyphae, in reverse brown with concentric rings at 25°C on PDA after 6 days. Conidia were fusiform-elliptical, sometimes long obclavate to oblong-elliptical, pointed at one or both ends, one celled, aseptate, hyaline, guttulate, and 11.6 to 16.1 × 3.1 to 5.2 μm in size (n = 50). The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions of rDNA, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) gene, β-tubulin (TUB2) gene, and partial sequence of the actin (ACT) gene of representative isolate C1 were amplified and sequenced with primers ITS1/ITS4 (White et al. 1990), GDF1/GDR1, Bt2F/Bt2R, and ACT-512F/ACT-783R, respectively. The ITS consensus sequence (GenBank accession no. KX611163) showed 99% homology with the ITS sequence of C. acutatum (KF928293). The other three consensus sequences (KY049983, KY049984, and KY049982, respectively) revealed 100% identity to the corresponding sequences of C. acutatum in GenBank (JQ948685, JQ950015, and JQ949720, respectively). Based on the above, the isolates were identified as C. acutatum (Sutton 1980; Zhang et al. 2008). To confirm pathogenicity, six mature, healthy peach fruits purchased commercially were surface disinfested with 70% ethanol, and then wounded in four locations on each fruit with a sterile needle. Sterile filter paper disks, dipped in conidial suspension (1 × 105 conidia/ml) or sterile water, were placed on each wound. Three fruits were inoculated per treatment and incubated at 25°C for 2 days at 100% humidity and then another 7 days at 75% humidity. After removal of the filter paper disks 3 days later, symptoms (small, dark lesions) appeared. Six days after inoculation, abundant orange conidial masses were observed. Ten days later, the inoculated areas had decayed. Control fruits remained healthy. C. acutatum was reisolated from symptomatic fruits, and the recovered isolates were identified as C. acutatum through morphological and molecular characterizations. To our knowledge, this is the first report of anthracnose of peach fruit caused by C. acutatum in Fujian Province, China. This disease can seriously affect peach quality and yield, so effective measures should be implemented to control it.

Detection of chilli anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum cliviae in India

Chilli fruits with typical anthracnose symptoms of sunken, dark brown necrotic tissue with concentric brown black rings of acervuli around the fruits were observed in the fields in Jalna, Maharashtra, India. Based on morphological and molecular characterization, fungus was identified as Colletotrichum cliviae, which is reported for the first time, causing anthracnose on chilli in India.

Antifungal activity of water-soluble chitosan against Colletotrichum capsici in postharvest chili pepper

Experimental results proved that the development of Colletotrichum capsici B4 is extremely sensitive to water-soluble chitosan (WSC) and inhibitory effects increase with increasing concentrations of WSC. In the in vitro test, the results showed that the entire prevention of conidial germination and mycelial diameter development are recognized in a potato dextrose agar medium containing 0.4% and 0.8% WSC, respectively. WSC was more efficient in a potato dextrose broth where it absolutely prevented the mycelial development of C. capsici B4 at a concentration of 0.32%. WSC treatments considerably decreased disease prevalence and the lesion diameter of anthracnose disease on chilli pepper fruits in the in vivo experiments. Experiments in biochemistry indicated that the activities of the key defense-related enzymes in peel, consisting of chitinase, β-1,3-glucanase and total phenolic content, were increased by both C. capsici B4 infection and C. capsici B4 treatment, and was further treated with a 0.5% WSC concentration. Practical applications From the present studies we conclude that water-soluble chitosan (WSC) can directly inhibit the development of C. capsici B4 isolated from infected chili pepper fruits showing typical symptoms of anthracnose in in vitro and effectively control anthracnose in chili pepper fruit in in vivo with concentration-dependent antifungal effects. These findings suggest that WSC may be recognized as a feasible effective alternative to artificial fungicides for postharvest disease control of chili pepper fruits.

First Report of Post-harvest Anthracnose on Mango (Mangifera indica) Caused by Colletotrichum siamense in China

From April to July 2016, fruits of mango (Mangifera indica L.) showing post-harvest anthracnose symptoms were collected during a supermarket survey conducted in Changchun (125.24°E, 43.48°N), Jilin province, China. Three supermarkets 9.5 km apart were investigated in Changchun. The source of the mangoes in these supermarkets were from Guangxi and Yunnan province. A total of 275 symptomatic fruits were collected from these markets, and approximately 50% of these mango fruits (about 137 fruits) showed typical anthracnose symptoms. During cold storage, the symptoms began as black, pinhead-sized spots on the fruit peel. After 6 to 12 days at room temperature, the symptoms consisted of sunken, prominent, dark brown to black decay spots containing black acervuli, and after incubation, the outside and inside of these infected fruits became black and watery, then finally, severely decayed. To isolate the pathogen, small pieces of symptomatic plant tissues were surface-sterilized with 1.5% NaOCl for 1 min, washed ...

First report of papaya anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum salsolae in India

Papaya (Carica papaya) is an important fruit crop grown in tropical and subtropical regions of India. India ranks first in papaya production in the world with over 5.63 million tonnes produced annually (FAOSTAT, 2). Anthracnose of papaya caused by Colletotrichum species is an important disease worldwide, resulting in post-harvest fruit decay which severely affects the marketability of the fruits (Ademe et al., 1). In August 2016, papaya fruits showing typical anthracnose symptoms of small sunken spots were observed in two different fields in Badnapur, Jalna, Maharashtra, India (Fig. 1) and around 15% of the papaya plants were affected. The papaya fruits were semi ripe when harvested and ten fruits were incubated at 28°C in the dark for four-five days at 90% humidity to allow for further development of disease symptoms. Sunken necrotic fruit tissue was then examined under a microscope and conidia were inoculated onto potato dextrose agar (PDA) containing 50 mg/l streptomycin sulphate. The plates were incubated at 28°C with a 16/8 hr light/dark cycle for five to seven days and pure cultures were obtained by sub-culturing onto fresh PDA plates. Identification of isolates was based on morphological as well as molecular characterisation. All ten fruits were found to be infected with Colletotrichum gloeosporioides and among them six fruits had a mixed infection of C. gloeosporioides and Colletotrichum salsolae. Only identification of the C. salsolae isolate is described here. The putative C. salsolae isolate had white aerial mycelia with an olive-coloured colony and a light-salmon coloured conidial mass (Fig. 2). The mycelial growth rate on PDA at 28°C with 16 hr photoperiod was 16 mm per day. Conidia obtained from incubated papaya fruits were single celled, cylindrical with a rounded base and apex. The mean length and width of conidia was 16.69 ±1.04 μm and 5.56 ±0.18 μm, respectively (Fig. 3). The morphological characteristics of the isolate matched the description of C. salsolae (Weir et al., 6). Molecular characterisation of the putative C. salsolae isolate involved PCR amplification of the partial β-tubulin gene using the universal primer pair Bt2a/b and GAPDH gene. Both sequences were deposited in GenBank (Accession Nos. KY401636 and KY401637 respectively) and aligned with published sequences using MEGA version 6.0 and phylogenetic analysis was done (Fig. 4). Blast searches in the NCBI database revealed that the β-tubulin and GAPDH gene sequences had 99% and 97% identity to C. salsolae (KC790894 and JX009916, respectively). The pathogenicity of C. salsolae isolated from infected papaya fruit was confirmed on healthy papaya fruits obtained from the local market. The fruits were washed with sterile distilled water and then surface sterilised with 70% ethanol for 30 seconds. Papaya fruits were wounded with a sterile syringe and inoculated with 10 μl of a conidial suspension (c. 105 conidia/ml). Sterile water was used as a control. Inoculated papaya fruits were kept in a chamber at 28°C in the dark with 90% humidity. After seven days typical anthracnose symptoms were observed on the inoculated papaya fruit but not on the controls (Fig. 5). Conidia were re-isolated from the inoculated symptomatic papaya fruits and characterised morphologically as well as molecularly and found to be identical to the original inoculated C. salsolae spores, thereby fulfilling Koch's postulates. In India, Colletotrichum karstii (Sharma & Shenoy, 5), Colletotrichum fructicola and C. gloeosporioides (Saini et al., 4) along with some other unverifiable records (Farr & Rossman, 3) have been reported to cause papaya anthracnose. To our knowledge, this is the first report of papaya anthracnose caused by C. salsolae in India. The pathogen has previously only been reported on Salsola tragus in Hungary (Weir et al., 6). As this was a mixed infection it is not known what proportion of the affected fruits was infected by C. salsolae in the field. However, this new finding shows that C. salsolae is not host-specific and may occur in more geographical locations than is currently recorded.

First Report of Colletotrichum scovillei Causing Anthracnose Fruit Rot on Pepper in Anhui Province, China

HomePlant DiseaseVol. 100, No. 10First Report of Colletotrichum scovillei Causing Anthracnose Fruit Rot on Pepper in Anhui Province, China PreviousNext DISEASE NOTES OPENOpen Access licenseFirst Report of Colletotrichum scovillei Causing Anthracnose Fruit Rot on Pepper in Anhui Province, ChinaW. Zhao, T. Wang, Q. Q. Chen, Y. K. Chi, T. M. Swe, and R. D. QiW. ZhaoSearch for more papers by this author, T. WangSearch for more papers by this author, Q. Q. ChenSearch for more papers by this author, Y. K. ChiSearch for more papers by this author, T. M. SweSearch for more papers by this author, and R. D. QiSearch for more papers by this authorAffiliationsAuthors and Affiliations W. Zhao T. Wang Q. Q. Chen Y. K. Chi , Institute of Plant Protection and Agro-Products Safety, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, 230031 China T. M. Swe , Biotechnological and Material Science Research Department, Ministry of Science and Technology, Kyaukse 05151, Myanmar R. D. Qi , Institute of Plant Protection and Agro-Products Safety, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, 230031 China, and Scientific Observing and Experimental Station of Crop Pests in Hefei, Ministry of Agriculture, Hefei 230031, China. Published Online:15 Jul 2016https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-04-16-0443-PDNAboutSections ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmailWechat Anthracnose fruit rot is a major disease of pepper (Capsicum annuum), which causes severe damage and enormous economic loss in pepper production. Colletotrichum acutatum, C. coccodes, C. boninense, and C. capsici have been reported as causal agents for anthracnose on pepper in China (Xia et al. 2011; Diao et al. 2013). Since 2014, dark, circular, sunken zones with concentric rings of orange conidial masses, the typical anthracnose symptoms, have appeared on pepper fruits in Shitai, Anhui Province, China. Small tissue pieces from the edges of lesions on fruits were disinfected in 70% (v/v) ethanol for 30 s and in 2% (v/v) hypochlorous acid solution for 2 min, rinsed twice in sterilized water, air-dried, then incubated on potato dextrose agar (PDA) at 25°C. Eight isolates of the pathogen were obtained from different diseased plants. Colony morphology on Spezieller Nährstoffarmer Agar (SNA) was pale gray to pale orange fluffy aerial mycelium. The conidia were hyaline, aseptate, smooth, straight, subcylindrical to clavate, with one end round and one end round or acute, 11.8 to 16.5 µm long and 3.2 to 4.5 µm wide, L/W ratio = 3.6. These morphological characters are consistent with the description of C. scovillei (Damm et al. 2012). To confirm this identification, the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA regions, glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GADPH) gene, and β-tubulin-2 (TUB2) gene were amplified with the primers ITS1/ITS4, GDF/GDR, and TUBT1/TUBT2, respectively. The consensus sequences of the ITS was deposited in GenBank under the accession number KU680418. Compared with the sequence of strain CBS 126529 of C. scovillei in GenBank (Damm et al. 2012), the amplification products showed 100% homology with the ITS sequence (GenBank Accession No. JQ948267), the GADPH sequence (JQ948597), and the TUB2 sequence (JQ949918), respectively. A pathogenicity test was performed by depositing 10 µl droplets of a suspension (105 conidia/ml) on the surfaces of five artificially wounded fruits (prick a small hole on pepper fruit using needle). Five wounded fruits were inoculated with sterilized distilled water as the control. After 5 days in a moist chamber at 25°C, symptoms similar to those observed on the original pepper plants had developed on the five wounded fruits that had been inoculated, and C. scovillei was reisolated from the lesions. The control fruits remained healthy. Recently, C. acutatum has been considered a species complex. C. scovillei is one of the species that belongs Clade D3 within the C. acutatum species complex (Damm et al. 2012). C. scovillei causing anthracnose disease on pepper was previously reported in Japan and Brazil (Caires et al. 2014; Takeshi et al. 2014). However, to our knowledge, this is the first report of occurrence of anthracnose fruit rot caused by C. scovillei on pepper in China. This disease causes severe damage both in the field and postharvest and there is a need to develop effective control strategies in the pepper production in these regions.

First report of chilli anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum karstii in India

Chilli, Capsicum annum, is an annual herbaceous vegetable and spice grown in almost all the states of India. Anthracnose (fruit rot) of chilli caused by Colletotrichum species results in both pre- and post-harvest fruit decay with yield losses of up to 50% (Pakdeevaraporn et al., 3). The different species of Colletotrichum causing chilli anthracnose reported from India include: Colletotrichum acutatum, C. capsici, C. coccodes, C. dematium, C. gloeosporioides and C. siamense. In August 2014, chilli fruits showing typical anthracnose symptoms of sunken necrotic tissues with concentric brown black rings of acervuli were obtained from a farmer's field in Jalna, Maharashtra, India. Small pieces of necrotic tissue were examined under a microscope and spores inoculated on potato dextrose agar (PDA) containing 50 mg/l streptomycin sulphate. The plates were incubated at 28°C for 5 to 7 days and a pure culture of the Colletotrichum isolate was obtained by subculturing on fresh PDA plates. The colonies had white aerial mycelia with an orange conidial mass (Fig. 1). The colour of the colony on the reverse side was light orange. The mycelial growth rate on the PDA plate at 28°C and a 16/8 h light/dark cycle respectively, was 11 mm per day. Conidia were single celled, cylindrical with rounded base and apex. Mean length and width of conidia was 13.11 ±1.22 μm and 6.2 ±0.34 μm, respectively (Fig. 2). Molecular characterization of the Colletotrichum isolate was based on ITS rDNA and partial β-tubulin gene sequence comparisons. PCR amplification was done using the universal primer pair ITS 4/5 (ITS region of the nuclear ITS1-5.8S - ITS2 rDNA; White et al., 5) and β-tubulin gene Bt2a/b primers (Glass et al., 1). Both sequences were deposited in GenBank (Accession Nos. KX492583 and KX492584, respectively) and aligned with published sequences using MEGA version 6.0 (Tamura et al., 6), and phylogenetic analysis was done (Fig. 3). Blast searches in the NCBI database revealed that the ITS and β-tubulin gene sequences had 98% and 99% identity to Colletotrichum karstii (KT284369 and KC293650, respectively) confirming that the isolate obtained from infected chilli is C. karstii. To confirm pathogenicity, chilli fruits and seedlings were wounded with a sterile syringe and inoculated with 10 μl of a conidial suspension (c. 105 conidia/ml). Sterile water was used as a control. Inoculated fruits and seedlings were kept in a chamber at 28°C with 90% humidity. After seven days typical anthracnose symptoms were observed on chilli fruits and leaves (Fig. 4). This demonstrated that C. karstii re-isolated from symptomatic chilli fruits was able to cause anthracnose, thereby fulfilling Koch's postulates. Colletotrichum karstii as a causal agent of chilli anthracnose has been reported in Brazil (Lima et al., 2) and China (Wang et al., 4). To our knowledge, this is the first report of chilli anthracnose caused by C. karstii in India.

Colletotrichum gloeosporioides associated with anthracnose symptoms on citrus, a new report for Tunisia

Colletotrichum gloeosporioides causing anthracnose disease of citrus is reported for the first time in Tunisia. Since early 2009, wither-tip symptoms of twigs, resembling disease caused by anthracnose were observed on cultivated citrus trees in Tunisia. Cultural and morphological features of the identified causal agent were consistent and resembled those described for C. gloeosporioides. These results were confirmed by sequencing of the internal spacer rDNA (ITS), glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), glutamine synthetase (GS) and the ApMat locus regions and by multilocus phylogenetic analyses. Pathogenicity tests revealed that C. gloeosporioides isolated from withered twigs caused typical anthracnose symptoms on citrus fruits and leaves.

Anthracnose of lucky bamboo Dracaena sanderiana caused by the fungus Colletotrichum dracaenophilum in Egypt

Dracaena sanderiana, of the family Liliaceae, is among the ornamental plants most frequently imported into Egypt. Typical anthracnose symptoms were observed on the stems of imported D. sanderiana samples. The pathogen was isolated, demonstrated to be pathogenic based on Koch’s rule and identified as Colletotrichum dracaenophilum. The optimum temperature for its growth ranges from 25 to 30°C, maintained for 8days. Kemazed 50% wettable powder (WP) was the most effective fungicide against the pathogen, as no fungal growth was observed over 100ppm. The biocontrol agents Trichoderma harzianum and Trichoderma viride followed by Bacillus subtilis and Bacillus pumilus caused the highest reduction in fungal growth. To the best of our knowledge, this report describes the first time that this pathogen was observed on D. sanderiana in Egypt.

Species from the Colletotrichum acutatum, Colletotrichum boninense and Colletotrichum gloeosporioides species complexes associated with tree tomato and mango crops in Colombia

Colletotrichum species cause typical anthracnose symptoms in tree tomato and mango. To characterize species of Colletotrichum in these two crops in Colombia, 91 isolates were collected from several localities. Phylogenetic analyses using nuclear gene sequencing of the ITS region and the glyceraldehyde 3‐phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) gene allowed the identification of three groups: acutatum, gloeosporioides and boninense. These three groups were further confirmed using two additional genomic regions (chitin synthase 1 and actin) for 30 isolates representative of the three previously identified complexes and one genomic region (ApMat) for the Colletotrichum gloeosporioides complex strains. The entire approach permitted a robust strain identification that allowed phylogenetic species recognition (PSR) based on the identification of well‐supported monophyletic clades and concordance between individual and multilocus phylogenies. Morphological and physiological assays were also conducted. Isolates that were morphologically identified as C. gloeosporioides showed high phenotypic diversity. Pathogenicity data revealed a considerable degree of host preference.

Colletotrichum siamense causing anthracnose in Bauhinia forficata subsp. pruinosa in Argentina

Bauhinia forficata subsp. pruinosa is a common perennial tree species native to South America that belongs to the Fabaceae. In December 2010 and 2011, plants from a nursery located in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina presented typical symptoms of anthracnose. We isolated from the lesions of diseased leaves a fungus that based on morphological as well as the ITS (KC132841) and β-tubulin sequences (KJ829534) was identified as Colletotrichum siamense. After 12 days leaves inoculated with the fungal spore suspension developed lesions similar to those observed in natural infections. The fungus was then re-isolated fulfilling Koch’s Postulates. To our knowledge, this is the first report of Colletotrichum siamense causing anthracnose in Bauhinia forficata subsp. pruinosa in Argentina.

First Report of Anthracnose on Pepper Fruit Caused by Colletotrichum scovillei in Brazil.

Anthracnose is major disease of pepper (Capsicum annum) in the tropics and causes severe damage both in the field and postharvest. In Brazil, this disease is caused by Colletotrichum acutatum, C. boninense, C. capsici, C. coccodes, and C. gloeosporioides, where the first species is responsible for 70% of all occurrences (3). Recently, C. acutatum has been considered a species complex (1); thus, the aim of this study was to verify the etiology of anthracnose on peppers using a morphological and molecular approaches. In 2011, pepper fruits with typical symptoms of anthracnose (dark, sunken spots with concentric rings of orange conidial masses) were collected in Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil. A single spore isolate was obtained on potato dextrose agar (PDA), and the derived culture was deposited in the Coleção de Culturas de Fungos Fitopatogênicos "Prof. Maria Menezes" (code CMM-4200). The upper side colonies on PDA were gray, cotton-like, and pale gray to pale orange. Conidia were hyaline, aseptate, smooth, straight, cylindrical with round ends or occasionally with end ± acute, 12.5 to 17 μm long and 3.5 to 4 μm wide on synthetic nutrient deficient agar. The isolate was morphologically typical of species belonging to the C. acutatum complex. Molecular identification of the pathogen was carried out and sequences of the regions internal transcribed spacer (ITS), glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), and β-tubulin (βt) were obtained and deposited in GenBank (Accession Nos. KJ541821 to KJ541823). A search in the Q-bank fungi database using the ITS, βt, and GAPDH sequences retrieved C. scovillei with 100% identity for all three genes. This pathogen was previously reported in Capsicum spp. only in Thailand, Indonesia, and Japan (1,2). To confirm pathogenicity, drops with 105 spores/ml were deposited in 10 artificially wounded fruits (cv. Itapuã 501 and Melina). In control fruits, drops of sterilized water were deposited onto wounds. The fruits were covered for one day with a transparent plastic bag with moisture supplied by a wet filter paper. The fruits were detached and mature. The bags were removed, and the fruits were incubated for 10 days in a growth chamber at 25°C with a photoperiod of 12 h. After 4 days, gray-brown to black sunken spots with concentric rings were observed on 100% of the wounded fruits that had been inoculated. No disease was observed on the control fruits. The fungus C. scovillei was successfully re-isolated from symptomatic fruits to fulfill Koch's postulates. To our knowledge, this is the first report of anthracnose on pepper fruit caused by C. scovillei in Brazil. Due to the diversity of species that cause anthracnose in Capsicum, future studies using morphological and molecular tools are essential for the correct identification of Colletotrichum spp. on pepper in Brazil.

First Report of Colletotrichum clavatum Causing Quince Anthracnose in Serbia.

Quince (Cydonia oblonga Mill.) tree is traditionally grown in Serbia. The fruits are used for compote, marmalade, and brandy production. In December 2012, quince fruits cv. Leskovacka with symptoms of postharvest anthracnose were collected in a storage facility in the area of Sabac, western Serbia. The symptoms were observed on fruits approximately 2 months after harvest. The incidence of the disease was about 3%, but the symptoms were severe. Affected fruits showed sunken, dark brown to black lesions with orange conidial masses produced in black acervuli. Small pieces (3 to 5 mm) of necrotic tissue were surface sterilized for 1 min in 1% NaOCl, washed twice with sterile distilled water, and placed on potato dextrose agar (PDA). Macroscopic and microscopic morphology characteristics of three isolates were observed after growth on PDA for 7 days at 25°C under a 12-h photoperiod. Fungal colonies developed white to gray dense aerial mycelium with orange conidial masses in the center of the colony. Conidia were hyaline, aseptate, clavate with rounded distal apices, 15.2 (12.8 to 16.8) × 4.5 (4.0 to 5.2) μm (mean L/W ratio = 3.3, n = 100). Morphological characteristics are consistent with the description of Colletotrichum clavatum (2). Fungal isolates were also characterized by sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rDNA region using ITS1/IT4 primers and β-tubuline 2 gene using T1/T2 primers. The nucleotide sequences were deposited in GenBank (ITS Accession Nos. KF908866, KF908867, and KF908868; β-tubuline 2 gene KF908869, KF908870, and KF908871). BLAST analyses of ITS and β-tubuline 2 gene sequences showed that isolates from quince were 100% identical to other C. clavatum in GenBank (ITS JN121126, JN121130, JN121132, and JN121180; β-tubuline 2 gene JN121213 to 17, JN121219, JN121228, JN121261 to 62, and JN121266 to 69), thus confirming the morphological identification. To fulfill Koch's postulates, asymptomatic fruits of quince cv. Leskovacka (five fruits per isolate) were surface sterilized with 70% ethanol, wounded with a sterile needle, and inoculated with 50 μl of a spore suspension (1 × 106 conidia/ml). Five control fruits were inoculated with 50 μl of sterile distilled water. The experiment was repeated twice. After 10 days of incubation in plastic containers, under high humidity (>90% RH) at 25°C, typical anthracnose symptoms developed on inoculated fruits, while control fruits remained symptomless. The isolates recovered from symptomatic fruits showed the same morphological features as original isolates. C. clavatum previously indicated as group B (3), or genetic group A4 within the C. acutatum sensu lato complex (4), is responsible for olive anthracnose in some Mediterranean countries (1,2), and has been reported as causal agent of anthracnose on a wide range of other hosts including woody and herbaceous plants, ornamentals, and fruit trees worldwide (4). To our knowledge, this is the first report of C. clavatum in Serbia, and the first report of quince anthracnose caused by this pathogen in Europe. Anthracnose caused by C. clavatum can endanger the production and storage of quince in the future, and may require investigation of new disease management practices to control this fungus.

Characterization and epidemiology of Colletotrichum acutatum sensu lato (C. chrysanthemi) causing Carthamus tinctorius anthracnose

In 2012, Colletotrichum isolates were collected from field‐grown safflower (Carthamus tinctorius) crops in central Italy from plants exhibiting typical anthracnose symptoms. Colletotrichum isolates were also collected from seed surfaces and from within seeds. The genetic variability of these isolates was assessed by a multilocus sequencing approach and compared with those from Colletotrichum chrysanthemi and Colletotrichum carthami isolates from different geographic areas and other Colletotrichum acutatum sensu lato‐related isolates. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that all of the strains isolated from C. tinctorius belonged to the species described as C. chrysanthemi, whereas all of the strains belonging to C. carthami had been isolated from Calendula officinalis. Phenotypic characterization of isolates was performed by assessing growth rates at different temperatures, morphology of colonies on potato dextrose agar (PDA) and the size of conidia. All C. chrysanthemi isolates from safflower had similar growth rates at different temperatures, comparable colony morphologies when grown on PDA and conidial sizes consistent with previously described C. chrysanthemi isolates. Pathogenicity tests were performed by artificially inoculating both seeds and plants and confirmed the seedborne nature of this pathogen. When inoculated on plants, C. chrysanthemi caused the typical symptoms of anthracnose on leaves. This is the first record of this pathogen on C. tinctorius in Italy, and it presents an updated characterization of Colletotrichum isolates pathogenic to safflowers in Europe.