Plant Protection Science, 2016 (vol. 52), issue 3
Causal agents of stone fruit diseases in Slovenia and the potential for diminishing their economic impact - a reviewReview
Ivan Žežlina, Mojca Rot, Milica Kač, Stanislav Trdan
Plant Protect. Sci., 2016, 52(3):149-157 | DOI: 10.17221/58/2015-PPS 
In the last twenty years, stone fruit production in Slovenia has considerably decreased. Acreage with peaches and nectarines has been significantly reduced. Orchard renewal has decreased for various reasons; among them, the frequent occurrence of various diseases is the most significant. These diseases make the economic feasibility of stone fruit production difficult if not impossible. This review addresses the most important stone fruit diseases in Slovenia: European stone fruit yellows, sharka, bacterial leaf spot, bacterioses caused by Pseudomonas spp., perennial canker, and Fusicoccum canker. Additionally, this review focuses on the possibilities...
Investigation on the incidence of Plum pox virus in fruit nurseries of the Czech RepublicOriginal Paper
Jaroslav Polák, Petr Komínek
Plant Protect. Sci., 2016, 52(3):158-163 | DOI: 10.17221/117/2015-PPS
Nine different visual evaluations of Plum pox virus (PPV) presence were carried out in four nurseries during 2012-2015. Results of visual evaluation were verified by ELISA. The presence of PPV was confirmed by ELISA in all the trees showing PPV symptoms. PPV has never been detected by ELISA in trees without PPV symptoms on leaves. A very low occurrence of PPV was proved in plums in all the four nurseries. There were two cases of higher occurrence of PPV in plum cultivars, where PPV originated from infected grafts. The PPV occurrence was 0.126 and 1.59%. The average occurrence of PPV in plums was 0.075%, 93 trees out of 123 630 inspected were...
Pea streak virus recorded in EuropeOriginal Paper
Tatiana Sarkisová, Martina Bečková, Jana Fránová, Karel Petrzik
Plant Protect. Sci., 2016, 52(3):164-166 | DOI: 10.17221/157/2015-PPS
Alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) is concluded to be the principal reservoir of Pea streak virus (PeSV, genus Carlavirus) which induces necrotic streaking symptoms in pea. This virus is prevalent in pea growing areas in the USA, but in Europe it was recorded only once almost 60 years ago. Recently, filamentous virus particles 600-700 nm long have been observed in examined plant sap of alfalfa with leaf malformation, local necrotic lesions and yellow spots on leaves. Four kilo base pairs nucleotide sequence of PeSV including partial replicase gene, triple gene block, and capsid protein (CP) gene has been...
Isolation and identification of antifungal compounds produced by Bacillus Y-IVI for suppressing Fusarium wilt of muskmelonOriginal Paper
Qingyun Zhao, Xinlan Mei, Yangchun Xu
Plant Protect. Sci., 2016, 52(3):167-175 | DOI: 10.17221/70/2015-PPS
The Bacillus strain Y-IVI was used in the biocontrol of muskmelon Fusarium wilt. It was identified as Bacillus subtilis. The antifungal compounds from the culture filtrate were purified by high performance liquid chromatography. Two series of homologous ion peaks were analysed by liquid chromatography-electrospray ionisation-mass spectrometry, one with molecular weights of 1028.7, 1042.7, and 1056.7 and the other with molecular weights of 1463, 1477, and 1491. The compounds were ascribed to iturin A and fengycin, respectively. The maximum production of iturin by Y-IVI was 89.75 mg/l. In conclusion, we provided biochemical...
Identification of Phytophthora species by a high resolution melting analysis: an innovative tool for rapid differentiationOriginal Paper
Antonios Zambounis, Anastasios Samaras, Aliki Xanthopoulou, Maslin Osathanunkul, Leonardo Schena, Athanasios Tsaftaris, Panagiotis Madesis
Plant Protect. Sci., 2016, 52(3):176-181 | DOI: 10.17221/179/2015-PPS
A new molecular method via the high resolution melting (HRM) analysis of the Ypt1 gene non-coding regions was validated for ten Phytophthora species with a broad host range from forest trees to crop species. The melting curve analysis of the amplicons specifically grouped all species into 10 respective unique and distinct HRM curve profiles. The analysis of the normalised HRM melting curves, assigning P. nicotianae as a normalised reference genotype, revealed that the genotype similarities among all the species were adequately low, indicating that Ypt1 marker was sufficient to...
First Report of Plasmopara halstedii New Races 705 and 715 on sunflower from the Czech Republic - Short CommunicationShort Communication
Michaela Sedlářová, Romana Pospíchalová, Zuzana Drábková Trojanová, Tomáš Bartůšek, Lucie Slobodianová, Aleš Lebeda
Plant Protect. Sci., 2016, 52(3):182-187 | DOI: 10.17221/7/2016-PPS
Downy mildew caused by Plasmopara halstedii significantly reduces annual yields of sunflower. At least 42 races of P. halstedii have been identified around the world. For the first time to our knowledge, races 705 and 715 of P. halstedii have been isolated, originating from sunflower plants collected at a single site (Podivín, South-East Moravia) in the Czech Republic at the beginning of June 2014. This enlarges the global number of the so far identified and reported races of P. halstedii to 44. The increasing complexity of P. halstedii pathogenicity led to race...
Biological control of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) de Bary, the causal agent of white mould disease in red cabbage, by some bacteriaOriginal Paper
Elif Tozlu, Parisa Mohammadi, Merve Senol Kotan, Hayrunnisa Nadaroglu, Recep Kotan
Plant Protect. Sci., 2016, 52(3):188-198 | DOI: 10.17221/96/2015-PPS
Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) de Bary is the causal agent of white mould, stem, and fruit rot diseases on a wide variety of crop plants including cabbage (Brassica oleracea L.) in field and storage. Control of this pathogen by using commercial disease management methods is extremely difficult. Therefore, this study was performed to develop an alternative and effective control method for the diseases by using biocontrol bacteria - Bacillus subtilis (strains TV-6F, TV-17C, TV-12H, BA-140 and EK-7), Bacillus megaterium (strains TV-103B), and Bacillus pumilus (strains RK-103) on Petri plate assays and on red...
Natural prevalence of entomopathogenic fungi in hibernating pupae of Cameraria ohridella (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae) and virulence of selected isolatesOriginal Paper
Robert Schemmer, Petra Chládeková, Juraj Medo, Marek Barta
Plant Protect. Sci., 2016, 52(3):199-208 | DOI: 10.17221/110/2015-PPS
Spontaneous infection of hibernating Cameraria ohridella pupae by entomopathogenic fungi was monitored at two localities of south-western Slovakia and efficacy of selected fungal isolates against the pupae was evaluated in laboratory. Natural prevalence of fungal infection in pupal populations was low (< 7%) and varied depending upon collecting date, locality, year, and pathogen. Ten isolates of three fungal species, Beauveria pseudobassiana, Isaria fumosorosea, and I. farinosa, isolated from the naturally infected pupae and three isolates of non-insect origin of two fungi, B. bassiana and Metarhizium...
Effect of two host plants, Helianthus annuus L. and Sinapis arvensis L., on life table parameters of Nysius cymoides (Spinola) (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae) under laboratory conditionsOriginal Paper
Mehdi Mollashahi, Ahad Sahragard, Jafar Mohaghegh, Reza Hosseini, Hossein Sabouri
Plant Protect. Sci., 2016, 52(3):209-216 | DOI: 10.17221/90/2015-PPS
The false chinch bug, Nysius cymoides (Spinola) is a pest of sunflower attacking sunflower fields from their weedy and cultivated hosts. The effect of sunflower and wild mustard (wild host) on the life table parameters of N. cymoides was studied under laboratory conditions (24 ± 1°C, 65 ± 5% RH, a 16:8 h (L:D) photoperiod). Data were analysed based on the age-stage, two-sex life table theory. Developmental time (sum of incubation and nymphal periods) on wild mustard was longer than on sunflower with significant difference (P < 0.05). The adult longevity was significantly shorter on wild mustard than on sunflower....
First record of the cottony cushion scale Icerya purchasi (Hemiptera, Monophlebidae) in Slovakia - short communicationShort Communication
Ján Kollár, Ladislav Bakay, Michal Pástor
Plant Protect. Sci., 2016, 52(3):217-219 | DOI: 10.17221/23/2016-PPS
Damage by the cottony cushion scale Icerya purchasi (Hemiptera: Coccoidea: Monophlebidae: Iceryini) was found on Rosmarinus officinalis at the locality Suchohrad in Slovakia. Icerya purchasi is a cosmopolitan plant pest of warmer climates. In Central Europe it is a pest of glasshouses. It is the first observation of the cottony cushion scale (at least short-term) occurrence in the outdoor conditions in Slovakia.