Plant Pathogens

Diplodia Sapinea

A fungus belonging to the family Botryosphaeriaceae that affects seeds through seed cone blight and causes symptoms such as damping off, root rot, decay, discoloration, and death of seedlings.

Xylella Fastidiosa

A Gram-negative bacterium that colonizes xylem vessels, blocking water and nutrient transport in plants. It is primarily transmitted by xylem-sap feeding insects and causes diseases like Pierce's disease in grapevines.

Ustilaginoidea virens

Rice False Smut Fungus that inhibits pollen germination, degrades rice ovule integuments, and invades pistils and stamens. It causes symptoms like elevated levels of ROS, enhanced callose deposition, and destruction of ovule integuments.

Alternaria tenuis and Botrytis cinerea

Fungi that cause fruit rot in various fruits and vegetables. Alternaria tenuis is known for causing black spot and Botrytis cinerea causes gray mold. Both fungi spread through spores and thrive in warm and moist conditions.

Puccinia Triticina

Wheat leaf rust, a fungal disease that affects wheat, barley, and rye. It spreads through uredospores and basidiospores, infecting wheat leaves and alternate hosts like meadow rue. It inhibits stomata to invade plants and causes yield loss.

Phytophthora

Soilborne pathogens that cause root rot and damage above-ground plant parts. They have cellulose cell walls, filamentous hyphae, and produce oospores and zoospores. Phytophthora infects various plants, including Irish potato, fruit trees, and ornamental plants.

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum

A necrotrophic fungal pathogen that causes white mold in plants like lettuce, cabbage, and sunflower. It forms lesions, white moldy growth, and sclerotia. Its life cycle involves overwintering in soil, formation of apothecia, and distribution of infection through ascospores.

Phytophthora Infestans

An oomycete that causes late blight disease in potatoes and tomatoes. It produces water-soaked spots, lesions, and rot in tubers. Its life cycle involves direct and indirect germination, as well as sexual and asexual reproduction through sporangiospores and zoosporangia.

Potato Spindle Tuber Viroid (PSTVd)

A viroid that causes tuber deformation, cracking, and stunting in plants. It has a circular, single-stranded RNA and primarily infects the Solanaceae family. It is transmitted through aphids, pollen, and contaminated seeds or tubers. Control measures include using virus-free seeds and destroying infected plants.