Molecular and experimental evidence of multi-resistance of Cercospora beticola field populations to MBC, DMI and QoI fungicides

Cercospora leaf spot (CLS) caused by Cercospora beticola occurs annually in Serbia causing severe yield losses of sugar beet, which requires intensive use of fungicides. In recent years we have observed unsatisfactory control of CLS originating from northwestern Serbia. Frequency of C. beticola populations resistant to Quinone outside inhibitors (QoI) was 81% (51/63 isolates), 98% (62/63) to sterol-demethylation inbibitors (DMI) and 54% (34/63) to methyl-2-benzimidazole carbamate fungicides (MBC). The genetic basis underlying the resistance was tested by characterizing the cob, CYP51 and -tubulin genes, associated with resistance to QoI, DMI and MBC fungicides, respectively. Isolates that were resistant to QoI fungicides had the G143A mutation in the cob gene. Characterization of the CYP51 gene revealed seven diverse haplotypes; however, no correlation with sensitivity or resistance to DMI fungicides could be identified. Resistance to MBC fungicides was associated with the presence of the E198A mutation in the -tubulin gene of all resistant isolates. From a total of 63 isolates originating from sugar beet fields of northwestern Serbia, 62 isolates showed resistance to multiple modes of action. Three multi-resistant phenotypes were identified: MR1 (N = 29) - resistant to QoI and DMI fungicides (QoI-R and DMI-R) but sensitive to MBC fungicides (MBC-S); MR2 (N = 11, QoI-S, DMI-R and MBC-R); and MR3 (N = 22), resistant to all three groups of fungicides (QoI-R, DMI-R and MBC-R). This is the first report of C. beticola resistance to QoI fungicides in Serbia. This study revealed development of multi-resistance of C. beticola isolates to MBC, DMI and QoI fungicides, which represents the first record of this phenomenon in C. beticola populations

Intracranial tumors in adult population of the Varaždin County (Croatia) 1996-2004: a population-based retrospective incidence study

Aim: To estimate the incidence of intracranial tumors in the adult population of the Varazdin County, Croatia, for the 1996-2004 period. - - - - - Methods: Setting: Varazdin County General Hospital and four university hospitals in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. Study period: January 1, 1996 to December 31, 2004. Incident patients: county residents admitted for newly diagnosed intracranial tumors according to the WHO diagnostic criteria. Demographic data were extracted from the 2001 Croatian census. Incidence rates (IRs) per 100,000 person-years (p-y) and annual IRs (per 100,000 persons) were determined and compared as incidence rate ratios (IRRs) with 95% CI. - - - - - Results: For primary intracranial tumors (PITs), IR was 12.1/100,000 p-y (95% CI: 10.3-14.2), comparable in men and women. The highest incidence was recorded for glioblastoma (IR 4.8, 3.7-6.2) and meningioma (IR 3.1, 2.2-4.2). The incidence of PIT was somewhat greater than that of metastatic tumors (IRR 1.58, 95% CI: 1.22-2.05, P = 40 vs. population aged <= 39 (all IRRs with 95% CI greater than 1, P < 0.05 or < 0.001), comparable in men and women. Women were somewhat older than men at the time of diagnosis of PIT: median difference -6 years (95.1% CI: -10 to -1, P < 0.05). Annual IRs for all these tumor categories showed increasing trends over the study period. - - - - - Conclusion: Overall, there was an increasing trend in the incidence of primary intracranial tumors in the Varazdin County. Data did not allow estimation for most of the specific tumor types