Stem cankers and twig dieback were the most serious disease of fig (Ficus carica) and loquat (Eriobotrya japonica) noticed in a survey of fruit tree orchards in the Fars Province, Iran. Isolates of Bionectriaceae were consistently recovered from symptomatic fig and loquat trees. Phylogenetic analyses of multiple nuclear loci, internal transcribed spacer regions (ITS) of rDNA, RNA polymerase II subunit 2 (rpb2), and translation elongation factor 1-α (tef1), combined with morphological observations, revealed that isolates could be referred to a still unknown taxon, which was formally described as Stilbocrea banihashemiana sp. nov. Phylogenetically, isolates from fig and loquat trees clustered in a well-supported monophyletic group within the Stilbocrea clade of Bionectriaceae, closely related to S. walteri. Stilbocrea banihashemiana sp. nov. was characterized by the lack of stilbella-like asexual structure in both natural substrates and pure cultures and produced two morphologically distinct types of conidia, globose and cylindrical, formed on short and long simple phialides. In pathogenicity tests, S. banihashemiana sp. nov. induced stem cankers in both fig and loquat, wood discoloration in fig and twig dieback in loquat. Pathogenicity tests also showed that the potential host range of this novel pathogen includes other economically relevant horticultural trees.
Ficus carica L. is one of the most ancient fruit trees cultivated in Persia (Iran). The conservation and characterization of fig genetic resources is essential for sustainable fig production and food security. Given these considerations, this study characterizes the genetic variability of 21 edible F. carica cultivars in the Fars Province using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. The collected cultivars were also characterized for their morphological features. A total of 16 RAPD primers produced 229 reproducible bands, of which, 170 loci (74.43%) were polymorphic with an average polymorphic information content (PIC) value of 0.899. Genetic analysis using an unweighted pair-group method with arithmetic averaging (UPGMA) revealed genetic structure and relationships among the local germplasms. The dendrogram resulting from UPGMA hierarchical cluster analysis separated the fig cultivars into five groups. These results demonstrate that analysis of molecular variance allows for the partitioning of genetic variation between fig groups and illustrates greater variation within fig groups and subgroups. RAPD-based classification often corresponded with the morphological similarities and differences of the collected fig cultivars. This study suggests that RAPD markers are suitable for analysis of diversity and cultivars’ fingerprinting. Accordingly, understanding of the genetic diversity and population structure of F. carica in Iran may provide insight into the conservation and management of this species.
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