ABSTRACT
Late blight, caused by the oomycete Phytophthora infestans, is the most important disease of potato (Solanum tuberosum). The pathogen is highly adaptable and to get an overview of the genetic variation in the Nordic countries, Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden we have analyzed 200 isolates from different fields using nine simple-sequence repeat (SSR) markers. Forty-nine alleles were detected among the nine SSR loci and isolates from all four Nordic countries shared the most common alleles across the loci. In total 169 multilocus genotypes (based on seven loci) were identified among 191 isolates. The genotypic diversities, quantified by a normalized Shannon's diversity index (H(s)), were 0.95 for the four Nordic countries. The low F(ST) value of 0.04 indicates that the majority of variation is found within the four Nordic countries. The large number of genotypes and the frequency distribution of mating types (60% A1) support the hypothesis that sexual reproduction is contributing notably to the genetic variation of P. infestans in the Nordic countries.
Subject(s)
Genetic Variation , Mycelium/genetics , Phytophthora infestans/genetics , DNA, Fungal/genetics , DNA, Fungal/isolation & purification , Denmark , Finland , Gene Frequency , Genotype , Microsatellite Repeats , Norway , Solanum tuberosum/microbiology , SwedenABSTRACT
ABSTRACT We evaluated direct and interactive effects of light quality and intensity, temperature and light, diurnal rhythms, and timing of high relative humidity during long day lengths on sporulation of Bremia lactucae, the causal agent of lettuce downy mildew, using inoculated lettuce seedlings and detached cotyledons. Suppression of sporulation by light was strongly dependent upon temperature and there was little suppression at =10 degrees C. The most suppressive waveband was in the range from 400 to 450 nm, although a lesser effect of wavebands from 450 to 500 and 500 to 550 nm could be detected. At 15 degrees C, near the lower threshold for suppression of sporulation by light, a clear diurnal pattern of sporulation was observed independent of light and darkness. This diurnal rhythm potentially could interact with light and temperature to confound the results of controlled environment studies, and may be the controlling factor in timing of sporulation at low temperatures. Forecasting models that currently use sunrise and sunset to delimit periods conducive to sporulation can be adapted to short nights and extended twilight conditions by incorporating the effects reported herein. Additionally, models of sporulation could be adapted to better reflect a decrease or absence of the suppressive effect of light at <15 degrees C.