Carbendazim sensitivity in populations of Colletotrichum gloeosporioides complex infecting strawberry and yams in Hubei Province of China

• Main Authors: Yong-chao HAN, Xiang-guo ZENG, Fa-yun XIANG, Qing-hua ZHANG, Cong GUO, Feng-ying CHEN, Yu-chen GU
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2018-06-01
• Series: Journal of Integrative Agriculture
• Subjects: carbendazim; resistance frequency; Colletotrichum gloeosporioides; Colletotrichum species; point mutations; anthracnose
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095311917618549

The ascomycete fungus Colletotrichum gloeosporioides is a devastating plant pathogen with a wide host range and worldwide distribution. Carbendazim has been widely used to control anthracnose caused by the C. gloeosporioides complex in China for more than 30 years and resistance to carbendazim has been reported in China. A total of 125 Colletotrichum isolates of strawberry and yam were collected from different geographical regions in Hubei Province, China. Approximately 52.8% of Colletotrichum spp. isolates showed resistance to carbendazim. The isolates tested in this study belong to four species, and the frequencies of resistant isolates differed across Colletotrichum species. Resistant isolates were found in C. siamense and C. fructicola. In contrast, all isolates of C. gloeosporioides and C. aenigma were sensitive to carbendazim. Highly carbendazim-resistant isolates harbored the E198A mutation in the β-tubulin 2 (TUB2) gene, whereas moderately carbendazim-resistant isolates harbored the F200Y mutation in the TUB2 gene. Carbendazim-sensitive Colletotrichum isolates in this study were not genetically similar enough to form a separate cluster from resistant isolates. The result of this study emphasizes the importance of knowing which Colletotrichum sp. is present, when strategies for disease control are made.