Alternaria spp. Associated with Leaf Blight of Maize in Heilongjiang Province, China

Abstract

Maize is a major economic crop worldwide. Maize can be infected by Alternaria species causing leaf blight that can result in significant economic losses. In this study, 168 Alternaria isolates recovered from symptomatic maize leaves were identified based on morphological characteristics, pathogenicity, and multi-locus sequence analyses of glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), the internal transcribed spacer of ribosomal DNA (rDNA ITS), the RNA polymerase II second largest subunit (RPB2), and histone 3 (HIS3). Maize isolates grouped to four Alternaria species including Alternaria tenuissima, A. alternata, A. burnsii, and Alternaria sp. Notably, A. tenuissima (71.4%) was the most prevalent of the four isolated species, followed by A. alternata (21.5%), Alternaria sp. (4.1%), and A. burnsii (3.0%). Pathogenicity tests showed that all four Alternaria species could produce elliptic to nearly round, or strip lesions on leaves of maize, gray white to dry white in the lesions center and reddish brown in the edge. The average disease incidence (58.47%) and average disease index (63.55) of maize leaves inoculated with A. alternata were significantly higher than levels resulting from A. tenuissima (55.28% and 58.49), Alternaria sp. (55.34% and 58.75), and A. burnsii (56% and 55). Haplotype analyses indicated that there were 14 haplotypes of A. tenuissima and 5 haplotypes of A. alternata in Heilongjiang province and suggested the occurrence of a population expansion. Results of the study showed that Alternaria species associated with maize leaf blight in Heilongjiang province are more diverse than those have been previously reported. This is the first report globally of A. tenuissima, A. burnsii, and an unclassified Alternaria species as causal agents of leaf blight on maize.

Fungal Species Causing Maize Leaf Blight in Different Agro-Ecologies in India

“…Furthermore, C. papendorfii (synonym: B. papendorfii) was shown to be a pathogen of maize in China [46]. Alternaria species including A. tenuissima, A. alternata, and A. burnsii were shown to cause disease in maize [47,48]. Migration of these pathogenic fungal species to maize may have happened from adjacent sugarcane or rice fields or due to secondary inoculum developed on previous crops in the rotation schedule, which necessitates further investigations.…”

Effects of long-term application of organic manure and chemical fertilizer on soil properties and microbial communities in the agro-pastoral ecotone of North China

“…Paramyrothecium abundances were significantly lower in CFM than in other treatments. Furthermore, Alternaria, which can cause potato brown spot and potato early blight, was most abundant in CK and CF (Xu et al, 2022). Cladosporium is a saprophytic taxon but is also an important plant pathogen that mainly infects plant leaves, branches, and fruits, resulting in poor quality and reduced yields (Bensch et al, 2012).…”

A Case Study in Saudi Arabia: Biodiversity of Maize Seed-Borne Pathogenic Fungi in Relation to Biochemical, Physiological, and Molecular Characteristics

“…The results obtained revealed that Alternaria alternata KSU4M1-1 caused dramatic losses of seedling survival (67%) as compared with the control treatment (96%). Recently, A. alternata was reported to be among four causal agents of Alternaria leaf spot disease on maize seedlings [ 50 ]. Other studies have stated that the risk is not only due to the yield loss they cause but also due to reduction in the grain quality (discoloration) and nutritive value, in addition to an array of Alternaria mycotoxins that belong to three derivatives: tetramic acid, dibenzopyrone, and perylene, which play an important role in the pathogenesis and can inhibit the germination of maize as well [ 51 , 52 ].…”