Samaneh Dashtipoor, Doustmorad Zafari,
Volume 13, Issue 1 ((Autumn & Winter) 2024)
Abstract
Dashtipoor, S., & Zafari, D. (2024). Two Fusarium species pathogenic to sugarcane in Khuzestan Province, Iran. Plant Pathology Science, 13(1), 14-26.
Sugarcane is an important commercial product that is used for sugar production and many industrial uses. This research was conducted to identify Fusarium species causing sugarcane pokabong disease in plants with symptoms of vascular wilting and red veins in the leaves. This disease is one of the most important and spreading diseases of sugarcane in the world, which leads to a significant decrease in the sugarcane crop. The purpose of this research was to identify Fusarium species causing this disease in Khuzestan province of Iran. The sugarcane fields of this province were visited and samples were taken from the diseased tissues of the plants. The diseased tissues were cultured on potato dextrose agar medium after washing and surface disinfection. Morphological identification of the species was done using valid identification keys, and the combined analysis method of the data of tef 1α and rpb2 gene regions was used to confirm their identity. The pathogenicity test was performed and the results indicated that the identified species were pathogenic. Fusarium culmorum and Fusarium oxysporum species were identified as sugarcane pathogens. This is the first report of F. culmorum and F. oxysporum species as pathogens of sugarcane in Iran.
