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Molecular detection of C olletotrichum falcatum causing red rot disease of sugarcane ( S accharum officinarum ) using a SCAR marker
Author(s) -
Nithya K.,
Bukhari Khalid A.I.M.,
Valluvaparidasan V.,
Paranidharan V.,
Velazhahan R.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
annals of applied biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 80
eISSN - 1744-7348
pISSN - 0003-4746
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-7348.2011.00529.x
Subject(s) - saccharum officinarum , biology , saccharum , botany , conidium , horticulture
Red rot disease of sugarcane caused by C olletotrichum falcatum is one of the most destructive diseases of sugarcane ( Saccharum officinarum ) worldwide. The pathogen spreads primarily through infected sugarcane setts and hence the use of disease‐free planting materials is essential for preventing disease development in the field. In the present study a polymerase chain reaction ( PCR ) assay was developed for accurate and sensitive detection of C . falcatum in planting materials. Randomly amplified polymorphic DNA ( RAPD ) analysis identified a 566 bp PCR fragment that was specific to C . falcatum . The DNA sequence of this fragment was determined and used to design oligonucleotides amplifying a 442 bp sequence characterised amplified region ( SCAR ). The specificity of the SCAR primers was evaluated using purified DNA from C . falcatum and other C olletotrichum spp. as templates in PCR . The results indicated that the SCAR primers were highly specific to C . falcatum since the 442 bp fragment was amplified only from DNA of isolates and races of C . falcatum but not from any other C olletotrichum spp. tested. The detection sensitivity of C . falcatum was 0.1 ng for genomic DNA of C . falcatum and 5 ng for DNA extracted from infected sugarcane tissue. This new PCR ‐based assay is a convenient tool for detection of this important pathogen in seed canes to ensure production of sugarcane.