Integrated Management of Fusarium Wilt Diseases

The integrated management concept is one of the fundamental paradigms that have emerged in crop protection in the last 50 yrs and yet a matter for legislation as exemplified by the European Union that recently has establishes the integrated management as the fundamental procedure for the management of crop diseases, pests and weeds. However, the integrated management is not a panacea for the control of plant diseases. It is an ecology-based approach aiming minimizing damage caused by diseases through ‘the combined use of all available disease control measures, either simultaneously or in a sequence, through actions taken prior and after establishing the crop’. In this chapter, we propose and develop a strategy for the integrated management for Fusarium wilts, one of the most devastating and challenging type of diseases impairing agricultural production worldwide,, based on the: (i) use of pathogen-free planting material; (ii) site selection to avoid planting into high risk soils; (iii) reduction or elimination of F. oxysporum inoculum in soil; (iv) use of biocontrol agents for protection of healthy planting material from infection by resident or incoming inoculum subsequent to planting; (v) use of resistant cultivars regardless the level of resistance; and (vi) choice of cropping practices to avoid conditions favouring infection of the plant. The integrated management of Fusarium wilt diseases is difficult because complexities of target pathosystems are overlaid on the inherent complexities of the management strategy itself. Much research is still needed on population biology and genetic diversity in Fusarium wilt pathogens, disease risk prediction, disease-incidence-yield losses relationships, biological control, biotechnological breeding for disease resistance. On top of difficulties pointed out above, the practice of integrated management requires involvement of well-trained professional plant pathologists able to implement the tenets of the concept at the local level, as well as to incorporate into decision-making framework new knowledge and technologies that may be developed from scientific research. As the demand has increased for knowledgeable practitioners capable of integrating multifaceted controls in rigorous IDM programs, institutional support has declined through declining or even vanishing University education in Plant Pathology and the loss of extension-related activities in commercial agriculture. Erosion at the top of the trickle-down structure responsible for knowledge transfer to the field is one of the most serious threats to IDM

Identification of pathogenic races 0, 1B/C, 5 and 6 of fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris with random amplified polymorphic DNA

Abstract Ninety-nine isolates of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris (Foc), representative of the two pathotypes (yellowing and wilt) and the eight races described (races 0, 1A, 1B/C, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6), were used in this study. Sixty isolates were analyzed by the RAPD technique using DNA bulks for each race and 40 primers. Bands presumably specific for a DNA bulk were identified and this specificity was confirmed by further RAPD analysis of individual isolates in each DNA bulk. Primers OPI-09, OPI-18, OPF-06, OPF-10, and OPF-12 generated RAPD marker bands for races 0, 1B/C, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. The reliability and utility of this procedure was validated in 'blind trials' using 39 new Foc isolates. Ten of the 39 isolates had already been typed to race by pathogenicity tests and 29 were typed both by pathogenicity and RAPD testing in this study. In these 'blind trials', we assigned the 39 new isolates to a race solely on the basis of their RAPD haplotype. Thus, we concluded that Foc races 0, 1B/C, 5, and 6 can be characterized by the RAPD markers. Cluster analysis of the RAPD data set resulted in three clusters of isolates within Foc. The yellowing isolates were grouped in two distinct clusters which correspond to races 0 and 1B/C. The wilt isolates constitute a third cluster that included races 1A, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. These results provide a means of studying the distribution of Foc races, to assist in the early detection of introduced race(s) and to facilitate the efficient deployment of available host resistance

Complex molecular relationship between vegetative compatibility groups (VCGs) in Verticillium dahliae: VCGs do not always align with clonal lineages

Verticillium wilts caused by the soilborne fungus Verticillium dahliae are among the most challenging diseases to control. Populations of this pathogen have been traditionally studied by means of vegetative compatibility groups (VCGs) under the assumption that VCGs comprise genetically related isolates that correlate with clonal lineages. We aimed to resolve the phylogenetic relationships among VCGs and their subgroups based on sequences of the intergenic spacer region (IGS) of the ribosomal DNA and six anonymous polymorphic sequences containing single-nucleotide polymorphisms (VdSNPs). A collection of 68 V dahliae isolates representing the main VCGs and subgroups (VCGs 1A, 1B, 2A, 2B, 3, 4A, 4B, and 6) from different geographic origins and hosts was analyzed using the seven DNA regions. Maximum parsimony (MP) phylogenies inferred from IGS and VdSNP sequences showed five and six distinct clades, respectively. Phylogenetic analyses of individual and combined data sets indicated that certain VCG subgroups (e.g., VCGs 1A and 1B) are closely related and share a common ancestor; however, other subgroups (e.g., VCG 4B) are more closely related to members of a different VCG (e.g., VCG 2A) than to subgroups of the same VCG (VCG 4B). Furthermore, MP analyses indicated that VCG 2B is polyphyletic, with isolates placed in at least three distinct phylogenetic lineages based on IGS sequences and two lineages based on VdSNP sequences. Results from our study suggest the existence of main VCG lineages that contain VCGs 1A and 1B; VCGs 2A and 4B; and VCG 4A, for which both phylogenies agree; and the existence of other VCGs or VCG subgroups that seem to be genetically heterogeneous or show discrepancies in their phylogenetic placement: VCG 2B, VCG 3, and VCG 6. These results raise important caveats regarding the interpretation of VCG analyses: genetic homogeneity and close evolutionary relationship between members of a VCG should not be assumed.This research was partially funded by the Sarah Chinn Kalser Faculty Research Assistance Endowment, College of Agricultural Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University. We thank all suppliers of V. dahliae isolates; J. Yanez, S. Colihan, C. Barrett, C. Black, and C. Olivares-Garcia for excellent technical support; and D. Geiser for helpful discussions during the preparation of this manuscript.Jiménez Gasco, MDM.; Malcolm, GM.; Berbegal Martinez, M.; Armengol Fortí, J.; Jimenez Diaz, R. (2014). Complex molecular relationship between vegetative compatibility groups (VCGs) in Verticillium dahliae: VCGs do not always align with clonal lineages. Phytopathology. 104(6):650-659. doi:10.1094/PHYTO-07-13-0180-RS650659104

Advanced breast cancer clinical nursing curriculum: review and recommendations

Purpose The needs and concerns of patients with advanced breast cancer are changing at every phase of the care intervention. Management and coordination of hospital resources and services are also steadily evolving. The objective of the present expert report is to define a new oncology nursing role specialising in advanced breast cancer, to help guide patients throughout the whole healthcare itinerary. Methods A group of eight experts in oncology nursing and medical oncology defined the content index of the curriculum document. A systematic review of bibliography was carried out, and the relevant contents were extracted. Based on these contents and the participants’ experience recommendations were formulated and validated through a Delphi questionnaire and a participative meeting. Results The advanced breast cancer clinical nurse (ABCCN) should develop a clinical, psychosocial role focused on coordinating patients in the healthcare network. The nurse would be in charge of evaluating and supervising the care administered and the healthcare resources used. The ABCCN should be aware and participate in the protocols and available resources, be able to solve conflicts, deal with burn-out signs and have clinical, coaching and team-working abilities. The proposed curriculum provides a specific process for the care of patients, as well as an implementation process. Conclusions The ABCCN’s role is crucial to assume the best care and the optimisation of available resources. This review and consensus document provides the required tools for the implementation in hospitalsThe development of this work has been possible thanks to the financial support of Novartis Oncolog

Emergency care for women irregular migrants who arrive in Spain by small boat: a qualitative study

Background: this study aimed to describe and understand the experiences and health needs of women irregular migrants during emergency care provision upon arrival in Spain by small boat. Methods: a qualitative study based on Gadamer’s phenomenology was used. The data collection included 13 in-depth interviews with women irregular migrants and 10 in-depth interviews with key informants. The study took place in the Spanish Red Cross’ facilities between February 2017 and April 2018. Results: two main themes emerged from the data analysis: the need for emergency care focused on women irregular migrants with the sub-themes ‘Women irregular migrants as objects of sexual exploitation’ and ‘The mother-child dyad as the axis in human trafficking’; and developing an emergency care gender policy for women irregular migrants, with the subthemes ‘Healthcare in a police-controlled setting: detecting weaknesses’ and ‘Promoting screening and safety protocols focused on women irregular migrants’. Conclusions: women irregular migrants who arrive in Spain by small boat have specific needs and healthcare problems. Due to strict safety conditions during emergency care provision, rape and human trafficking can go unnoticed. Implications: interdisciplinary care protocols and new health policies that have a gender perspective are needed to improve the emergency care provided to women irregular migrants