IDENTIFICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF FUSICLADIUM ERIOBOTRYAE: FUNGAL PATHOGEN CAUSING MEDITERRANEAN LOQUAT SCAB

We have been able to isolate fungal pathogen causing Mediterranean loquat scab that we idenfied as Fusicladium eriobotryae according to conidial state and genetic characterization. Mediterranean loquat scab symptoms are generally most noticeable and serious on both sides of leaves and fruit as green to olive-brown spots. The lesion is usually circular and as it increases in size, it becomes olive-colored and velvety due to production of asexual spores We reproduced scab symptoms by developing an in vivo infection system. Following this strategy, we compared one of our isolates F. eriobotryae-NSH to different isolates closely related such as Venturia inaequalis, Venturia pyrina, Spilocaea pomi, Spilocaea eriobotryae and Fusicladiun carpophilum, studying symptoms and infection process. Our results confirm that our isolate is quite virulent on cultivars present in the Mediterranean region and therefore could be useful for testing varieties resistant to scab by using the in vivo system. Molecular characterization has also been done comparing different conserve regions such as D1/D2 region or ITS region among all strains dealing to establish the putative relationship among all of them.