Phomopsis cirsii: a potential biocontrol agent of Cirsium arvense

Abstract

Cirsium arvense is a noxious perennial weed which has become an increasing problem in north European countries. Biological control by natural antagonists is of increasing interest to supplement mechanical and chemical control. Several attempts to use fungi such as Alternaria cirsinoxia, Puccinia punctiformis and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum as biocontrol agents have been initiated. No mycoherbicides against C. arvense have been developed and the search for aggressive pathogens continues. In a Danish survey, several fungi were isolated from C. arvense. Four are new records in Denmark: the white rust fungus Pustula andropogonis, the leaf spot fungi Ramularia cirsii, Septoria cirsii and Phomopsis cirsii. Our study shows that P. cirsii is pathogenic to C. arvense, causing stem canker and die back, and that it may have potential as a mycoherbicide against its host. Growth characteristics of P. cirsii on artificial media are described, as well as a scale measuring severity of visible symptoms of P. cirsii on C. arvense. The taxonomic characteristics of Phomopsis spp. are compared and discussed in relation to other records of Phomopsis spp. found on Cirsium spp. and C. arvense.

Screening, identification and evaluation of potential biocontrol fungal endophytes against Rhizoctonia solani AG3 on potato plants

“…Our work is the first investigation to test both fungal genera Phomopsis and Alternaria for a role in controlling R. solani diseases. These fungi have been widely reported as potential BCAs against weeds Cirsium arvense, Amaranthus spp., and water hyacinth (Leth et al, 2008).…”

Relationships between the stereochemistry and biological activity of fungal phytotoxins

“…152 However, herbicides recommended for control of these perennials are limited and low in selectivity. [153][154][155] Search for efficacious biocontrol microorganisms and natural herbicides has been active and numerous surveys have been carried out to find pathogens on Canada thistle, [156][157][158] whereas those of perennial sowthistle have not been studied extensively. 159 Stagonospora cirsii and Ascochyta sonchi (syn.…”

Verticillium dahliaeand other pathogenic fungi inCirsium arvensefrom New Zealand pastures: occurrence, pathogenicity and biological control potential

“…Selecting microbial agents for the biological control of C. arvense has usually focused on organisms responsible for disease symptoms on aerial parts of the plant (Popay & Cheah 1990;Berestetskiy 1997;Bailey et al 2000;Bithell & Stewart 2001;Gronwald et al 2002;Waipara 2003;Zhang et al 2004;Kluth et al 2005;Gasich & Berestetskiy 2006;Leth et al 2008). In an attempt to target the most significant stages of the plant's lifecycle, our study has concentrated instead on pathogenic fungi that might affect the regenerative capacity of the weed's invasive creeping root system.…”

“…Several insects have been introduced into New Zealand for the classical biological control of C. arvense (Cripps et al 2011) in which the agent is expected to establish self-sustaining populations and spread throughout areas of weed infestation. An alternative bioherbicide approach, whereby a pathogenic microbial biological control agent is applied repeatedly and inundatively to the target weed population, has also been widely investigated with candidate bacteria Pseudomonas (Bailey et al 2000) and fungi from several genera including Alternaria (Gannibal & Berestetskiy 2008), Aschochyta (Gasich et al 2007), Colletotrichum (Bailey et al 2000), Fusarium (Ratajkiewicz et al 2009), Phoma (Cimmino et al 2008), Phomopsis (Leth et al 2008), Phyllosticta (Evidente et al 2008a), Puccinia (Voelker & Boyle 1994), Septoria (Hershenhorn et al 1993), Sclerotinia (Bourdoˆt et al 2006), Stagonospora (Evidente et al 2008b) and Verticillium (Leth & Haas 1984).…”