Are bananas (Musa spp.) really safe from their aesthetic relatives? Screening potential alternative hosts of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp cubense

作者：Waman A A; Bohra P^*; Sathyanarayana B N; Chandrashekar S C; Rani R Thilaka

来源：Journal of Horticultural Science & Biotechnology, 2013, 88(5): 559-562.

Panama wilt disease, caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense, is a major threat to the cultivation of bananas and plantains (Musa spp.) in tropical and sub-tropical countries. Most varieties of banana, especially those belonging to the Silk group, are highly susceptible to this disease. The fungus can survive and spread through alternate hosts. Ornamental plant species belonging to other families in the order Zingiberales (to which the genus Musa belongs) and the order Alismatales may serve as alternate hosts, and thus transmit the disease to new areas. This study was therefore conducted to screen the infectivity of the pathogen on nine commercially important ornamental plant species using detached leaf tissue-based challenge methodology. Of the ornamental species studied, Dieffenbachia and Strelitzia were found to be completely resistant to the pathogen, as no lesions developed in these species. Alpinia zerumbet, A. purpurea, Heliconia indica, and H. psittacorum showed significant resistance, and lesion areas did not differ significantly from resistant control plants. Among the remaining species, the development of lesion areas in Canna indica, Aglaonema pictum, and Hedychium coronarium was highest, and was significantly higher than in the resistant controls (Ensete superbum). The cultivation, multiplication, and export of ornamental species such as C. indica, A. pictum, and H. coronarium should therefore be avoided in banana-growing hotspots of Panama wilt disease, as these species may serve as alternative hosts for the pathogen.

• 出版日期2013-9