Pathotype Identification and Virulence Variation in Cochliobolus sativus in China

Spot blotch caused by Cochliobolus sativus has become an important disease in the wheat-growing regions in China due to changes of regional climate, agricultural cultivation pattern and widely growing susceptible wheat varieties. Little information is available about virulence variability and pathogenic specialization of the C. sativus isolates from major wheat-growing regions in China. Here, 12 representative wheat varieties and foundation breeding stocks were selected to characterize the pathotypes of C. sativus isolates from infected wheat plants. Based on the infection phenotypes in the 12 differential genotypes at the seedling stage, 70 Chinese pathotypes were identified from 110 isolates and clustered into three virulence groups. The high virulence isolates were collected from wheat leaves, crowns, and roots, with most (10 of 14) from the Henan province in the Huang-Huai plain. No relationship was evident between virulence variability of C. sativus isolates and their geographic origins or types of diseased wheat tissues. Cochliobolus sativus showed a significant pathogenic specialization in hosts of wheat and barley. Most of the wheat isolates (50 of 65) were avirulent to all the differential barley genotypes, and a few were virulent only to highly susceptible barley genotypes. These results indicated that C. sativus isolates from the wheat-growing regions in China varied considerably for their virulence in wheat varieties, and showed significant pathogenic specialization to the wheat and barley hosts.

In vitro Antagonistic Activity of Diverse Bacillus Species Against Cochliobolus sativus (Common Root Rot) of Barley

Antagonistic microorganisms have been used as biological control agents to reduce the use of chemical fungicides in the control of crop diseases. The present work was conducted to determine the antagonistic potential of Bacillus sp. isolates against the soil-borne fungus Cochliobolus sativus, the causal agent of barley common root (CRR) disease. Out of 525 isolates, 40 were showed in vitro antagonistic activity against the virulent C. sativus isolate CRR16. On the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequencing Bacillus sp. isolates are identified as B. atrophaeus, B. subtilis, Paenibacillus polymyxa, B. amyloliquefaciens, B. simplex and B. tequilensis. Results showed that Bacillus sp. had significant (P<0.05) antagonistic activities against the C. sativus where the percentage of radial growth inhibition of the fungi colonies ranged from 59 to 92%, compared to the untreated control. The B. subtilis isolate SY41B had the highest inhibition effect on the vegetative growth zones as compared with the other species isolates. In view of these, our results indicate that the antagonistic effect of the Bacillus sp. isolates may be important contributors as a biocontrol approach that could be employed as a part of integrated CRR management system.

Effect of rhizobacteria strains on the induction of resistance in barley genotypes against Cochliobolus sativus

SummaryEnhancement of the resistance level in plants by rhizobacteria has been proven in several pathosystems. This study investigated the ability of four rhizobacteria strains (Pseudomonas putida BTP1 and Bacillus subtilis Bs2500, Bs2504 and Bs2508) to promote the growth in three barley genotypes and protect them against Cochliobolus sativus. Our results demonstrated that all tested rhizobacteria strains had a protective effect on barley genotypes Arabi Abiad, Banteng and WI2291. However, P. putida BTP1 and B. subtilis Bs2508 strains were the most effective as they reduced disease incidence by 53 and 38% (mean effect), respectively. On the other hand, there were significant differences among the rhizobacteria-treated genotypes on plant growth parameters, such as wet weight, dry weight, plant height and number of leaves. Pseudomonas putida BTP1 strain was the most effective as it significantly increased plant growth by 15-32%. In addition, the susceptible genotypes Arabi Abiad and WI2291 were the most responsive to rhizobacteria. This means that these genotypes have a high potential for increase of their resistance against the pathogen and enhancement of plant growth after the application of rhizobacteria. Consequently, barley seed treatment with the tested rhizobacteria could be considered as an effective biocontrol method against C. sativus.