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Survey, identification and genetic diversity of Phytophthora capsici causing wilt of chilli (Capsicum annuum L.) in Bhutan

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Abstract

Chilli (Capsicum annuum L.) is one of the most important crops in Bhutan, but currently production is seriously affected by a wilt disease. Although chilli wilt was first reported in Bhutan in 1995, the causal pathogen has never been formally identified. The aim of this study was to identify the causative agent of wilt epidemics on chilli in Bhutan and to investigate the morphological and genetic variations in the pathogen. A survey of the disease was conducted in all three chilli growing regions of Bhutan in 2018 and the pathogen isolated from 54 diseased plants. Morphological and PCR evidence identified the pathogen as Phytophthora capsici in 100% of the diseased plants. All isolates were of the A1 mating type. Four random amplified micro-satellite (RAMS) markers were employed to assess genetic variation among the 54 isolates of P. capsici collected. Genetic analysis showed 26 loci from all four primers and 65.4% of the isolates were polymorphic. Shannon’s index of diversity (I) for the P. capsici isolates collected was 0.42, indicating that the pathogen population is highly clonal. These findings have significant implications for the development of sustainable disease management strategies including resistant genotypes in Bhutan.

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Acknowledgements

G. S. Rai thanks the Australian Centre for International Agriculture Research (ACIAR) for the award of a postgraduate scholarship from its John Allwright Fellowship programme. Mating type reference isolates were generously provided by Professor Andre Drenth, University of Queensland, Australia. We thank Dr Rosalie Daniel for providing a digital microscope camera for the fieldwork in Bhutan. The authors are thankful to the Agriculture Research and Development Centre at Bhur, Bhutan for human resource and logistic support during the fieldwork in Bhutan. The authors acknowledge the assistance of Mr Maniraj Gurung of the Agriculture Research and Development Centre at Bhur in collecting isolates of Phytophthora capsici in Bhutan during the survey.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sydney Institute of Agriculture, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia

    Ganja S. Rai & David. I. Guest

  2. Agriculture Research and Development Centre Bhur, Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, 31101, Gelephu, Bhutan

    Ganja S. Rai

  3. Australian Institute of Botanical Science, Royal Botanic Gardens and Domain Trust, Mrs Macquaries Road, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia

    Edward C. Y. Liew

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  1. Ganja S. Rai
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Correspondence to David. I. Guest.

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Rai, G.S., Liew, E.C.Y. & Guest, D.I. Survey, identification and genetic diversity of Phytophthora capsici causing wilt of chilli (Capsicum annuum L.) in Bhutan. Eur J Plant Pathol 158, 655–665 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-020-02108-4

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