Identification and Characterization of<i>Colletotrichum</i>Species Associated With<i>Camellia sinensis</i>Anthracnose in Anhui Province, China

Abstract

Recent advances in <i>Colletotrichum</i> taxonomy have led to the need to conduct fresh surveys of <i>Colletotrichum</i> species associated with important crops. Anthracnose caused by <i>Colletotrichum</i> spp. is one of the destructive diseases on <i>Camellia sinensis</i>. In this study, a total of 22 representative <i>Colletotrichum</i> isolates were obtained from diseased leaves of <i>Ca. sinensis</i> cultivated in four tea plantation regions in Anhui Province of China. The isolates were identified based on multilocus (<i>ITS</i>, <i>ACT</i>, <i>CAL</i>, <i>CHS-1</i>, <i>TUB2</i>, <i>GAPDH</i>) phylogenetic analyses, and their morphological characteristics were also analyzed. Twenty-one isolates belonging to <i>C. gloeosporioides</i> complex were identified as <i>C. camelliae</i>, <i>C. fructicola</i>, and <i>C. siamense</i>. One isolate belonging to <i>C. boninense</i> complex was identified as <i>C. karstii</i>. Pathogenicity tests revealed that the isolates of <i>C. camelliae</i> and <i>C. fructicola</i> were highly virulent when inoculated on the leaves of detached twigs of <i>Ca. sinensis</i> cv. Shuchazao. Furthermore, it was found that the interspecies virulence was less distinct and individual isolates showed varied virulence when inoculated on different varieties of <i>Ca. sinensis</i>. To our knowledge, this is the first report of <i>C. fructicola</i>, <i>C. siamense</i>, and <i>C. karstii</i> causing anthracnose on <i>Ca. sinensis</i> in Anhui Province, China.