In the October issue of Plant Disease, C. D. Garzon and colleagues demonstrate that low doses of the fungicide mefenoxam result in increased levels of Pythium-induced damping-off caused by Pythium isolates resistant to the fungicide. This work may explain certain occurrences of elevated disease severity following applications of fungicides. Read more...
 

MPMI Editor's Pick

The default state of most plant-pathogen interactions is 'no disease' due to the non-host resistance (NHR) response. In the October issue of MPMI, Ayliffe et al. explore natural NHR variation in rice, which shows broad resistance to cereal rust pathogens. The data suggest that these pathogens can colonize rice to varying extents but without disease, in contrast a dicot rust pathogen rarely colonized. Understanding and strengthening NHR systems into crop plants could be an effective means to provide broad resistance. Read more... 

 

Phytopathology Editor's Pick
Dr. Niklaus Grunwald, Editor-in-Chief  

Dieryck et al. developed an ingenious way of studying transmission of the Peanut clump virus by the protist vector Polymyxa graminis on cereal. Experimental, reliable virus transmission is complicated by the difficulties in maintaining cultures of vector and virus together on the same host plant. Using sugarcane as the common host for virus and vector, this work enabled controlled study of virus transmission in different forma speciales of P. graminis on cereal. Read more...