Endophytic and epiphytic phyllosphere fungal communities are shaped by different environmental factors in a mediterranean ecosystem

The online version of this article (https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-018-1161-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.The diversity and factors influencing fimgal assemblages in phyllosphere of Mediterranean tree species have been barely studied, especially when endophytic and epiphytic communities are simultaneously considered. In this work, the endophytic and epiphytic fungal communities from olive tree phyllosphere were studied. This tree species is natural from the Mediterranean region and adapted to grow under adverse climatic conditions. The main objectives were to determine whether there are differences between both fungal communities and to examine whether different abiotic (climate-related) and biotic (plant organs) factors play a pivotal role in structuring these communities. Both communities differed in size and composition, with epiphytic community being richer and more abundant, displaying also a dominance of melanized fungi. Season was the major driver of community composition, especially of epiphytes. Other drivers shaping epiphytes were wind speed and temperature, while plant organ, rainfall, and temperature were the major drivers for endophytic composition. In contrast, canopy orientation caused slight variations in community composition of fungi, but with distinct effects in spring and autumn seasons. In conclusion, epiphytic and endophytic communities are not driven by the same factors. Several sources of variation undergo complex interactions to form and maintain phyllosphere fungal community in Mediterranean climates. Climatic parameters have influence on these fungal communities, suggesting that they are likely to be affected by climate changes in a near future.This work is funded by FEDER funds through COMPETE (Programa Operacional Factores de Competitividade) and by national funds by FCT (Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia) within the framework of the project EXCL/AGR-PRO/0591/2012. T. Gomes thanks FCT, POPH-QREN, and FSE for PhD SFRH/BD/98127/2013 grant

Response of Quercus ilex seedlings to Phytophthora spp. root infection in a soil infestation test

[EN] Phytophthora species are the main agents associated with oak (Quercus spp.) decline, together with the changing environmental conditions and the intensive land use. The aim of this study was to evaluate the susceptibility of Quercus ilex to the inoculation with eight Phytophthora species. Seven to eight month old Q. ilex seedlings grown from acorns, obtained from two Spanish origins, were inoculated with P. cinnamomi, P. cryptogea, P. gonapodyides, P. megasperma, P. nicotianae, P. plurivora, P. psychrophila and P. quercina. All Phytophthora inoculated seedlings showed decline and symptoms including small dark necrotic root lesions, root cankers, and loss of fine roots and tap root. The most aggressive species were P. cinnamomi, P. cryptogea, P. gonapodyides, P. plurivora and P. psychrophila followed by P. megasperma., while Phytophthora quercina and P. nicotianae were the less aggressive species. Results obtained confirm that these Phytophthora species could constituted a threat to Q. ilex ecosystems and the implications are further discussed.The authors are grateful to A. Solla and his team from the Centro Universitario de Plasencia-Universidad de Extremadura (Spain) for helping in the acorns collection and to the CIEF (Centro para la Investigación y Experimentación Forestal, Generalitat Valenciana, Valencia, Spain) for providing the acorns. This research was supported by funding from the project AGL2011- 30438-C02-01 (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad, Spain).Mora-Sala, B.; Abad Campos, P.; Berbegal Martinez, M. (2018). Response of Quercus ilex seedlings to Phytophthora spp. root infection in a soil infestation test. European Journal of Plant Pathology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-018-01650-6SÁlvarez, L. A., Pérez-Sierra, A., Armengol, J., & García-Jiménez, J. (2007). 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The potential for pesticide trunk injections for control of thousand cankers disease of walnut

Thousand cankers disease, caused by the pathogen Geosmithia morbida vectored by the bark beetle Pityophthorus juglandis, has emerged as an important disease of walnut trees in Europe. The present study was performed to evaluate the efficacy of trunk injections of four commercial fungicides and one insecticide for control of the fungus and its vector. Laboratory tests indicated that fungicides containing prochloraz + tetraconazole were the most effective. Field trials on non-infected trees allowed for the selection of a mixture containing prochloraz and tetraconazole (Binal Pro), the insecticide abamectin (Vertimec EC) and the adjuvant 2-(2-ethoxyethoxy) ethanol (Carbitol (TM)) as having rapid host uptake. Injections of this formulation in naturally infected black walnut trees reduced the presence of G. morbida, supporting trunk injection as an efficient and low impact technique to manage fungal damage on infected trees

Diversity of Botryosphaeriaceae species associated with conifers in Portugal

Botryosphaeriaceous fungi were isolated from conifers showing disease symptoms such as die- backs, blights, and cankers. The isolates were grouped based on morphology and ERIC-PCR fingerprinting patterns and representatives of each group were identi- fied by sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. Nine species from four different genera in Botryosphaeriaceae were identified within the iso- lates. Many new fungus-host associations were estab- lished and several species of Botryosphaeriaceae are reported from conifers for the first time. Most of these species also represent new reports from Portugal. The genus Neofusicoccum that was thought to be mainly restricted to angiosperms was the most frequent within the collection of isolates, followed by Diplodia. Dothiorella and Botryosphaeria represented a minor fraction of the isolates. Interestingly, the most common species was N. luteum, which had never been reported from coniferous hosts. Our results indicate that Neo- fusicoccumspeciesmay bemore important as pathogens of conifers than it was previously recognised.Artur Alves was supported by the programme Ciência2008, co-funded by the Human Potential Operational Programme (National Strategic Reference Framework 2007–2013) and European Social Fund (EU). Carla Barradas was supported by a PhD grant from FCT (SFRH/BD/77939/2011).publishe