Genetic diversity in Macrophomina phaseolina, the causal agent of charcoal rot

Abstract

Macrophomina phaseolina (Botryosphaeriaceae) is an important soil- and seed-borne pathogen. This pathogen has a broad geographic distribution, and a large host range. The aim of the present study was to determine the genetic variation among a global set of 189 isolates of M. phaseolina, isolated from 23 hosts and 30 soil samples in 15 countries. To achieve this goal a multi-gene DNA analysis was conducted for the following five loci, ITS, TEF, ACT, CAL and TUB. Based on these results two well-defined clusters could be delineated, one corresponding to
M. phaseolina s. str., for which a suitable epitype is designated. The second clade corresponds to M. pseudophaseolina, a novel species occurring on Abelmoschus esculentus, Arachis hypogaea, Hibiscus sabdarifa and Vigna unguiculata in Senegal. No consistent correlation was found among genotype, host and geographic location, and both species could even occur on the same host at the same location. Although M. pseudophaseolina is presently only known from Senegal, further research is required to determine its virulence compared to M. phaseolina, and its geographic distribution.