Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum – the causal agent of broccoli soft rot in Serbia

Abstract

Soft rot symptoms were observed on broccoli plants in several commercial fields in the western part of Serbia. Six strains of bacteria were isolated from diseased tissues and identified as Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum using conventional bacteriological and molecular methods. All strains were non-fluorescent, gram-negative, facultative anaerobes, oxidase-negative and catalase-positive, causing soft rot on potato and carrot slices and did not induce hypersensitive reaction on tobacco leaves. They grew in 5% NaCl and at 37°C, did not produce acid from á-methyl glucoside, sorbitol and maltose, nor reducing substances from sucrose, but utilized lactose and trehalose, and did not produce indole or lecithinase. The investigated strains showed characteristic growth on Logan’s medium and did not produce blue pigmented indigoidine on GYCA medium nor “fried egg” colonies on PDA. The identity of strains was confirmed by ITS-PCR and ITS-RFLP analyses and by sequence analysis of the 16S rRNA gene. In a pathogenicity assay, all strains caused tissue discoloration and soft rot development on inoculated broccoli head tissue fragments.

Simptomi vlažne truleži brokolija uočeni su u nekoliko komercijalnih zasada u zapadnoj Srbiji. Sojevi bakterija izolovani su iz obolelog biljnog tkiva i identifikovani kao Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum korišćenjem konvencionalnih bakterioloških i novijih molekularnih metoda. Svi proučavani sojevi bili su nefluorescentni, Gram-negativni, fakultativno-anaerobni, oksidaza i lecitinaza negativni, katalaza pozitivni, prouzrokujući vlažnu trulež cvetnih drški brokolija, kriški krompira i kriški mrkve, ali nisu indukovali hipersenzitivnu reakciju duvana. Svi sojevi razvijaju se pri 37ºC i u prisustvu 5% NaCl, ne proizvode kiselinu iz α-metil glukozida, sorbitola i maloze, niti redukujuće supstance iz saharoze, ali razlažu laktozu i trehalozu, i ne stvaraju indol. Proučavani sojevi ispoljili su karakterističan razvoj na Loganovoj diferencijalnoj podlozi, i nisu proizvodili plavi pigment na GYCA podlozi niti “fried egg” kolonije na PDA podlozi. Identifikacija sojeva potvrđena je korišćenjem ITS-PCR i ITS-RFLP, kao i analizom sekvenci 16S rRNA gena. Prilikom izvođenja testa patogenosti, svi sojevi prouzrokovali su obezbojavanje tkiva i vlažnu trulež cvetnih drški brokolija.