Phylogeny, Distribution, and Pathogenicity of Lasiodiplodia Species Associated With Cankers and Dieback Symptoms of Persian Lime in Mexico

Abstract

Persian lime (Citrus latifolia Tan.) is an important and widely cultivated fruit crop in several regions of Mexico. In recent years, severe symptoms of gummosis, stem cankers, and dieback were detected in the Persian lime-producing region in the states of Veracruz and Puebla, Mexico. The aims of this study were to identify the species of Lasiodiplodia associated with these symptoms, determine the distribution of these species, and test their pathogenicity and virulence on Persian lime plants. In 2015, symptomatic samples were collected from 12 commercial Persian lime orchards, and 60 Lasiodiplodia isolates were obtained. Fungal identification of 32 representative isolates was performed using a phylogenetic analysis based on DNA sequence data of the internal transcribed spacer region and part of the translation elongation factor 1-α and β-tubulin genes. Sequence analyses were carried out using the Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian Inference methods. Six Lasiodiplodia species were identified as Lasiodiplodia pseudotheobromae, Lasiodiplodia theobromae, Lasiodiplodia brasiliense, Lasiodiplodia subglobosa, Lasiodiplodia citricola, and Lasiodiplodia iraniensis. All Lasiodiplodia species of this study are reported for the first time in association with Persian lime in Mexico and worldwide. L. pseudotheobromae (46.9% of isolates) was the most frequently isolated species followed by L. theobromae (28.1%) and L. brasiliense (12.5%). Pathogenicity on Persian lime young plants using a mycelial plug inoculation method showed that all identified Lasiodiplodia species were able to cause necrotic lesions and gummosis, but L. subglobosa, L. iraniensis, and L. pseudotheobromae were the most virulent.

A Survey of Trunk Disease Pathogens within Citrus Trees in Iran

“…Results revealed that L. theobromae was more virulent on lime shoots than other species. In contrast to our results, Bautista-Cruz et al reported that L. theobromae was the least virulent species when inoculated in Persian lime branches [ 70 ]. Several factors differed from the study carried out by Bautista-Cruz et al and might have contributed to the discrepancy between the experiments, including the type of planting material inoculated, the environmental conditions for disease development, the time for virulence assessment, and the fungal strain used in the pathogenicity test.…”

“…Several species of Botryosphaeriaceae are known to dieback and branch cankers in Citrus spp. worldwide [ 14 , 20 , 22 , 23 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 ]. Dothiorella viticola has been previously reported to cause gummosis in citrus in California [ 20 ] and Tunisia [ 71 ].…”

“…L . theobromae has been previously reported from some Citrus species, including C. limon in Chile [ 23 ] and Persian lime ( Citrus latifolia ) trees in Mexico [ 70 ]. Our study represents the first report of this species on C. sinensis and C. aurantifolia .…”

Efectividad de fungicidas y Trichorderma spp. para el control de Lasiodiplodia spp. en huertos de limón ‘Persa’ en Veracruz

“…Dicha situación se presenta en las zonas productoras de Veracruz, donde se disminuye la vida productiva y producción en árboles de limón 'Persa'. En 2019 se reportó a L. pseudotheobromae, L. theobromae, L. brasiliense, L. subglobosa, L. citricola y L. iraniensis como los agentes causales de la muerte descendente y cancros en huertos comerciales de limón 'Persa' en Puebla y Veracruz (Bautista-Cruz et al, 2019).…”

Is Lasiodiplodia theobromae the only species that causes leaf blight disease in Brazilian coconut palms?

“…In fact, identification of Botryosphaeriaceae using morphology only allows the separation of isolates to the genus level, with DNA phylogeny being the most relevant tool for describing Lasiodiplodia species according to the phylogenetic species concept (Ismail et al 2012;Phillips et al 2013;Slippers et al 2014;Osorio et al 2017). Within Botryosphaeriaceae, the use of DNA sequence data from multiple loci is strongly recommended (Phillips et al 2013;Slippers et al 2014;Rodríguez-Gálvez et al 2017;Rosado et al 2016;Bautista-Cruz et al 2019).…”