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Esca in young and mature vineyards, and molecular diagnosis of the associated fungi

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Abstract

Esca is one of the most important grapevine trunk diseases, and it can induce severe decline. In the past, the disease occurred mostly on mature vines, but today it is also present in young vineyards. The aim of this study was to investigate the incidence of esca in young (< 7 years old) and mature (> 11 years old) vineyards on cvs Montepulciano, Sangiovese, Verdicchio and Passerina located in the main viticultural areas of the Marche Region, central-eastern Italy. The average incidence of diseased plants was higher in mature (32.6%) than young (5.2%) vineyards, and Verdicchio and Passerina appeared to be the most sensitive among the cultivars considered, followed by Sangiovese and Montepulciano. The analysis of the spatial spread of esca carried out in two mature vineyards on cv. Verdicchio and a young vineyard on cv. Sangiovese showed a fluctuation in the numbers of infected plants over the three years of observation. The fungi associated with symptomatic plants were detected by classical and molecular tools. Isolation on agar media yielded colonies of Phaeomoniella chlamydospora (Pch), Botryosphaeria spp. (Bot), Fomitiporia mediterranea (Fomed) and, sporadically, Phaeoacremonium aleophilum (Pal). In samples from young plants, Bot and Pch were recurrent, while Pch and Fomed were found in mature vines and old rootstocks. Molecular detection with specific primer pairs for Pch, Pal, Fomed, and B. dothidea confirmed the data obtained using classical tools, and in some cases it was more sensitive. This study thus provides a further contribution to the association between causal agents and esca symptoms, and it confirms the importance of molecular tools for a sensitive detection of associated pathogens, which can also be present in propagative materials.

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Acknowledgements

The research study was commissioned from ARSIA-Toscana (Regional Agency for Development and Innovation in Agriculture and Forest) by fourteen administrative Regions and one autonomous province, and financed with funds provided by the “Ministero per le Politiche Agricole e Forestali” (Ministry for Agriculture and Forestry Policy, Italy) to implement the inter-Regional Project “Grapevine esca: research and experiment in the nursery and in the field for prevention and cure.” Thanks are also due to Prof. F. Faretra, University of Bari, who kindly provided the primers for the detection of Phaeomoniella chlamydospora.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental and Crop Science, Marche Polytechnic University, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131, Ancona, Italy

    G. Romanazzi & S. Murolo

  2. Servizio Fitosanitario – ASSAM, Regione Marche, Via Alpi, 21, 60131, Ancona, Italy

    L. Pizzichini & S. Nardi

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  1. G. Romanazzi
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  3. L. Pizzichini
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  4. S. Nardi
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Correspondence to G. Romanazzi.

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Romanazzi, G., Murolo, S., Pizzichini, L. et al. Esca in young and mature vineyards, and molecular diagnosis of the associated fungi. Eur J Plant Pathol 125, 277–290 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-009-9481-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-009-9481-8

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