Country-Wide qPCR Based Assessment of Plasmodiophora brassicae Spread in Agricultural Soils and Recommendations for the Cultivation of Brassicaceae Crops in Poland

Abstract

Clubroot is a damaging disease of oilseed rape and vegetable brassicas worldwide, caused by the soil-borne protist Plasmodiophora brassicae Wor. Due to the long life of resting spores, the assessment of the pathogen abundance in agricultural fields can serve as a guideline for disease control at the country-wide level or the regional scale. Between 2013 and 2019, we collected 431 soil samples from fields cultivated with Brassicaceae crops throughout 16 provinces of Poland. The samples were subjected to qPCR based analysis of P. brassicae DNA concentration. From these data, the spore loads and gene copies g−1 soil were calculated and used to produce an assessment of the current clubroot risk potential at a country-wide and regional scale. The country-wide map, showing the spread of the pathogen in agricultural soils, was made using ArcGis software package implementing the interpolation with the Inverse Distance Weight method. The calculation of gene copies specific to P. brassicae helped to formulate the recommendations for farmers in respect to the cultivation guidelines. It showed a high risk of yield losses in defined regions of north, south-west and central Poland and an urgent need to undertake intensive preventative measures.

A Proteome-Level Investigation Into Plasmodiophora brassicae Resistance in Brassica napus Canola

“…For over a century, Brassica crop yield has been negatively affected by P. brassicae Woronin, which causes clubroot disease ( Cook and Schwartz, 1930 ; Buczacki, 1983 ). This disease has impacted > 56 countries in all of Asia, Europe, Americas, some parts of Oceania and Africa, leading to yield losses of ∼15% globally ( Dixon, 2009 ; Czubatka-Bieńkowska et al, 2020 ). Development of CR canola cultivars has been successful in combating the disease but the evolution of new pathotypes of P. brassicae that can break down the resistance continues to be a major problem ( Strelkov et al, 2018 ).…”

Early-stage responses toPlasmodiophora brassicaeat the transcriptome and metabolome levels in clubroot resistant and susceptible oilseedBrassica napus

“…Clubroot disease, caused by P. brassicae W. causes a significant (B15%) yield loss globally. 1,2 This disease has been spreading rapidly and the frequency of reports of its incidence has dramatically increased globally including on the Canadian prairies. [2][3][4][5][6] Despite many decades of research, management and mitigation of the threat posed by P. brassicae, this disease still remains a significant challenge for canola production.…”

The clubroot pathogen Plasmodiophora brassicae: A profile update

“…While only detected in around 35,000 ha in 2010, today the pathogen has spread to more than 200,000 ha in the prairie provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba alone (Government of Alberta, 2021 ; Government of Manitoba, 2021 ; Government of Saskatchewan, 2021 ; Strelkov et al, 2022 ). However, the situation outside Canada is no different, with more than 80 countries reporting the presence of the clubroot pathogen and the disease, its alarming expansion to new fields (Figure 1 ), as well as substantial economic losses associated with it (Czubatka‐Bieńkowska et al, 2020 ; Dixon, 2009 ; Muirhead et al, 2020 ; Padrón‐Rodríguez et al, 2022 ; Říčařová et al, 2016 ; Zamani‐Noor, 2017 ). The presence and spread of clubroot resistance‐breaking P. brassicae isolates gives reason for further concerns (Strelkov et al, 2018 ).…”