Abstract

Alternaria panax (sect. Panax) is reported to be the main causal agent of alternaria blight on ginseng (Panax ginseng) in Asia. However, the species distribution causing ginseng alternaria blight in China has not been examined since 1964. Two hundred fifty-seven Alternaria isolates were obtained from 2015 to 2019 from 13 ginseng-producing areas in Jilin province, China. Based on morphological characteristics and sequence analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions of the ribosomal DNA (rDNA), glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), RNA polymerase second largest subunit (RPB2), translation elongation factor (TEF), and Alternaria major allergen (Alt a 1) genes, 248 (96.5%) of the isolates were identified as A. alternata and A. tenuissima (sect. Alternaria) and nine (3.5%) isolates were classified as A. panax (sect. Panax). To our knowledge, this is the first report of A. alternata (sect. Alternaria) as the primary cause of alternaria blight on ginseng in Jilin province of China.