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Identification and characterization of bacterial strains associated with diseased oak trees in Northern Iran
Author(s) -
Bakhshi ganje Meysam,
ShamsBakhsh Masoud,
Mackay John,
Rahimian Heshmatollah
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
forest pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.535
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1439-0329
pISSN - 1437-4781
DOI - 10.1111/efp.12571
Subject(s) - biology , canker , 16s ribosomal rna , outbreak , housekeeping gene , microbiology and biotechnology , multilocus sequence typing , polymerase chain reaction , botany , phylogenetic tree , bacteria , gene , genetics , genotype , virology , gene expression
Oak decline syndrome is characterized by periodic occurrences of decline and death of oaks over widespread areas. An outbreak of a new emerging disease on oak trees was reported in the Hyrcanian forest of Iran (Mazandaran and Golestan provinces) that showed stem bleeding and canker symptoms. Bacterial isolates were characterized through biochemical and physiological tests, protein electrophoresis, DNA fingerprinting (rep‐PCR, ERIC and BOX primers) and sequencing of 16S rRNA and MLSA (multilocus sequencing analysis) for housekeeping genes ( gyrB , infB and atpD ). A complex community of the genus Brenneria spp. ( Brenneria goodwinii , Brenneria roseae subsp. roseae , Brenneria sp. and Brenneria nigrifluens ) and a few isolates in the genus Gibbsiella were identified as major groups involved. Isolate differentiation was more accurate using concatenated partial gene sequences within the main groups. All bacterial isolates showed hypersensitivity reactions (HR) on Pelargonium leaves ( Pelargonium × hortorum ). Pathogenicity studies of different Brenneria and Gibbsiella strains revealed that they have potential to cause the disease in oak seedlings and devastating oak canker and stem bleeding symptoms in northern Iran. Due to the presence of several potentially pathogenic agent(s) associated with the oak decline, identification of the principal agent(s) is of major interest. To our knowledge, this is the first report of potentially pathogenic bacteria associated with oak bleeding and canker in Iran.