Endophytic fungi and latent pathogens in the sedge Carex secalina (Cyperaceae), a critically endangered species in Europe

Abstract

Endophytic fungi are widespread in plants and affect the host fitness and population size. We found 12 fungal taxa in C. secalina, a critically endangered species in several European countries, at two study sites in Poland. The most frequently occurring fungal taxa were Colletotrichum destructivum and Acremonium sp. Both taxa were found in half of the examined tussocks. The highest number of fungal taxa was noted in the C. secalina plants growing in the roadside area, where 7 of the 12 identified fungal taxa occurred. These fungi, inhabiting leaf tissues, are known for their pathogenicity but no visible symptoms of any diseases were observed on C. secalina leaves. This suggests that these fungi are latent pathogens.

Foliar Endophytic Fungi from the Endangered Eastern Mountain Avens (Geum peckii, Rosaceae) in Canada

“…rugosa) were common to all or most of our sampled sites (Supplemental Table S2). The fungi observed in G. peckii are potentially pathogenic to these surrounding woody plant species indicating that G. peckii may serve as a reservoir of numerous latent fungal pathogens, while further indicating that the fungi may not be pathogenic for the duration of their life cycles or that they may only be pathogenic to specific species in this bog ecosystem [3,[29][30][31]. As pathogenicity was not documented for G. peckii, this suggests that these fungi can be pathogenic to other plant species in the surrounding environment, while they are non-pathogenic towards G. peckii.…”

“…As pathogenicity was not documented for G. peckii, this suggests that these fungi can be pathogenic to other plant species in the surrounding environment, while they are non-pathogenic towards G. peckii. From a conservation perspective, G. peckii may host pathogens of its competitor plant species [30,32].…”