Didymellaceae species associated with tea plant (Camellia sinensis) in China

Abstract

Tea plant is one of the most important commercial crops worldwide. The Didymellaceae fungi can cause leaf blight disease of tea plant. In this study, 240 isolates were isolated from tea plant leaves of 10 provinces in China. Combined with multi-locus (ITS, LSU, <i>RPB2</i> and <i>TUB2</i>) phylogenetic analysis and morphological characteristics, these isolates were identified as 25 species of six genera in Didymellaceae, including 19 known species <i>Didymellacoffeae-arabicae</i>, <i>D.pomorum</i>, <i>D.segeticola</i>, <i>D.sinensis</i>, <i>Epicoccumcatenisporum</i>, <i>E.dendrobii</i>, <i>E.draconis</i>, <i>E.italicum</i>, <i>E.latusicollum</i>, <i>E.mackenziei</i>, <i>E.oryzae</i>, <i>E.poaceicola</i>, <i>E.rosae</i>, <i>E.sorghinum</i>, <i>E.tobaicum</i>, <i>Neoascochytamortariensis</i>, <i>Paraboeremialitseae</i>, <i>Remotididymellaanemophila</i> and <i>Stagonosporopsiscaricae</i>, of which 15 species were new record species and six novel species, named <i>D.yunnanensis</i>, <i>E.anhuiense</i>, <i>E.jingdongense</i>, <i>E.puerense</i>, <i>N.yunnanensis</i> and <i>N.zhejiangensis</i>. Amongst all isolates, <i>D.segeticola</i> was the most dominant species. Pathogenicity tests on tea plant leaves showed that <i>E.anhuiense</i> had the strongest virulence, while <i>E.puerense</i> had the weakest virulence. Besides, <i>D.pomorum</i>, <i>D.yunnanensis</i>, <i>E.dendrobii</i>, <i>E.italicum</i>, <i>E.jingdongense</i>, <i>E.mackenziei</i>, <i>E.oryzae</i>, <i>E.rosae</i>, <i>E.tobaicum</i>, <i>N.mortariensis</i>, <i>N.yunnanensis</i>, <i>N.zhejiangensis</i> and <i>R.anemophila</i> were non-pathogenic to the tea plant.