Occurence of pectinolytic bacteria causing blackleg and soft rot of potato in Kenya

Abstract

Potato (Solanum tuberosum) is the second most important crop after maize in Kenya and plays a major role in national food production and security. Despite its importance, production is constrained by a number of factors, including diseases. Diseases caused by bacteria are a major biotic production constraint. Soft rot and blackleg diseases are considered as important constraints causing considerable losses in many production systems. However, there is scanty information on soft rot and blackleg in potato production systems in Kenya. A limited survey was conducted between in four major potato growing regions to determine the identity of pectinolytic bacteria causing blackleg and soft rot disease of potato in Kenya. Tubers and stems with symptoms of blackleg and soft rot disease were collected from 91 randomly selected farms. Identification of the pathogens was done using phenotypic methods which involved culturing on semi-selective medium, biochemical tests, pathogenicity tests and DNA based methods. The results identified occurrence of Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum (6 isolates) in all four regions and Pectobacterium wasabiae (5 isolates) for the first time in Elgeiyo Marakwet. The identity of twelve isolates could not be specified and therefore needs further investigation.

Quantitative Real-Time PCR Assay for the Detection of Pectobacterium parmentieri, a Causal Agent of Potato Soft Rot

“…Information on the role of Ppa in the bacterial pathogenesis of potatoes worldwide is contradictory [ 22 ]. According to national monitoring surveys, Ppa occurrence ranges from single, moderate cases [ 6 ] to severe breakouts [ 10 ]. While wet weather throughout the year is preferred for the development of the pathogen ( (accessed on 17 May 2021)), a broad range of conditions is tolerated.…”

“…Several Pwa strains, isolated from potatoes and which cause soft rot, have been scrutinised and finally reclassified as new species [ 3 ]. Later on, Ppa was identified among potato pathogens in circulation in Europe and Russia [ 4 , 5 ], Africa [ 6 ], Asia [ 7 , 8 ] and America [ 9 , 10 ]. Many strains isolated from potatoes earlier, and initially attributed as Pwa or Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp.…”

Grupos Funcionais do Solo: Papel das Comunidades Microbianas Especializadas na Ciclagem de Nutrientes e Sensores de Distúrbios Ambientais

“…Suas enzimas apresentam a capacidade de hidrolisar polissacarídeos participando da decomposição dos resíduos orgânicos. Porém, muitos patógenos de plantas são conhecidos por apresentarem atividade pectinolítica (Kamau et al, 2019). A atividade enzimática dos pectinolíticos é bastante estudada, principalmente para utilização das suas enzimas na degradação de fibras em indústria têxtil e de processamento de frutos (Tumane et al, 2018;Cheng et al, 2021).…”

Prioritization of Invasive Alien Species With Potential to Threaten Agriculture And Biodiversity in Kenya Through Horizon Scanning

“…2021) such as biological control (Seehausen et al 2021) should therefore be assessed.A third species now recorded as present in Kenya but not at the time of the assessment is P. parmentieri, a soft rot Enterobacteriaceae(Ma et al 2007; van derWolf et al 2021). Pectobacterium wasabiae was found for the rst time in surveys in 2016/2017(Kamau et al 2019), but this species had earlier been transferred to P. parmentieri(Khayi et al 2016), so is now considered as present in the country. It was scored as having a relatively low likelihood of entry, but a high likelihood of establishing and causing signi cant economic damage.…”