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ARS Home » Plains Area » College Station, Texas » Southern Plains Agricultural Research Center » Insect Control and Cotton Disease Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #386312
Research Project: Molecular and Genetic Approaches to Manage Cotton Diseases

Location: Insect Control and Cotton Disease Research

Title: Detection and genotyping of Fov4 (race 4, VCG0114), the fusarium wilt pathogen of cotton

Author
item Liu, Jinggao
item WAGNER, TANYA - Texas A&M University

Submitted to: Book Chapter
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/19/2021
Publication Date: 10/23/2021
Citation: Liu, J., Wagner, T. 2021. Detection and genotyping of Fov4 (race 4, VCG0114), the fusarium wilt pathogen of cotton. In: Coleman, J., editor. Fusarium Wilt: Methods and Protocols, Methods in Molecular Biology. Switzerland: Springer Nature. 2391:191-205. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-1795-3_16.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-1795-3_16

Interpretive Summary: Fusarium wilt is a major fungal disease of cotton woldwide. One form of the pathogen, known as Fov4, was initially detected in the United States in 2001 and confined to cotton fields in California where cottonseed for planting originates. However, Fov4 was detected in several cotton fields in West Texas and New Mexico in 2017 and 2019, respectively. Unlike other forms of Fusarium wilt pathogens, Fov4 does not require the presence of plant parasitic roundworms called root-knot nematodes to cause severe disease in cotton. Spread of Fov4 in the United States could be catastrophic because there are no feasible control options once this pathogen is established in a field. Therefore, early detection of Fov4-infected fields, plants, and seed lots is critical for preventing the spread of this disease. This chapter describes detailed development of molecular diagnostics for rapid and accurate detection of Fov4, and for further grouping of Fov4 into four subtypes.

Technical Abstract: Fusarium wilt, caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. vasinfectum (Fov), is an important disease of cotton. More than 14 different genotypes as determined by VCG and sequence analyses are known to occur in the United States. Fov4 (race 4, VCG0114), originally found in India, was first detected in the United States in 2001 in California and recently in 2017 and 2019 in Texas and New Mexico, respectively. Four sub-genotypes of Fov4 have been identified, with Fov4 N, T, and MiT genotypes occurring in California, and Fov4 T and MT genotypes occurring in Texas. Unlike other genotypes of Fov in the United States, Fov4 does not require the presence of root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne incognita) to cause severe wilt in cotton and is a major concern to US cotton growers. Fov4 can be spread through a variety of mechanisms including through infected seed. Once a field is infested, the fungus becomes endemic since there are no economically viable means to eradicate the pathogen from infested fields. Therefore, a rapid and accurate detection method is essential for early identification of infested fields and seed lots to prevent further spread of Fov4. This chapter describes multiplex and singleplex PCR diagnostics for detection of Fov4, and for detection and genotyping N, T, MiT and MT genotypes of Fov4 from wilted cotton plants.