Virulence and genetic diversity of Pseudocercospora griseola isolates from Paraná State, Brazil

Abstract

The angular leaf spot, caused by the pathogenic fungus Pseudocercospora griseola, is one of the most widespread diseases in common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) producing areas. The use of resistant cultivars is indicated as an effective strategy to control the ALS pathogen (Miklas et al. 2006). Various resistance genes, named Phg-, conferring race specific resistance to different races of P. griseola have been identified. However, the strength of the resistance is complex, and a pathogen such P. griseola shows high diversity in its virulence (Pastor-Corrales and Tu 1989). In this work, angular leaf spot differential cultivars were used to characterize P. griseola isolates from infected common bean plants from Ponta Grossa, Paraná state, Brazil. In addition, these isolates were characterized through sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region.