Fusarium Wilt Affecting Chickpea Crop

Abstract

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) contributes 18% of the global production of grain legume and serves as an important source of dietary protein. An important decrease in cropping area and production has been recorded during the last two decades. Several biotic and abiotic constraints underlie this decrease. Despite the efforts deployed in breeding and selection of several chickpea varieties with high yield potential that are tolerant to diseases, the situation has remained the same for the last decade. Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris (Foc) is the major soil-borne fungus affecting chickpeas globally. Fusarium wilt epidemics can devastate crops and cause up to 100% loss in highly infested fields and under favorable conditions. To date, eight pathogenic races of Foc (races 0, 1A, 1B/C, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6) have been reported worldwide. The development of resistant cultivars is the most effective method to manage this disease and to contribute to stabilizing chickpea yields. Development of resistant varieties to fusarium wilt in different breeding programs is mainly based on conventional selection. This method is time-consuming and depends on inoculum load and specific environmental factors that influence disease development. The use of molecular tools offers great potential for chickpea improvement, specifically by identifying molecular markers closely linked to genes/QTLs controlling fusarium wilt.

Identification of QTLs for resistance to Fusarium wilt and Ascochyta blight in a recombinant inbred population of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.)

“…LG04 were not reported so far (Jendoubi et al 2017). This could be due to a new resistant parent ICCV 05330 used in this study as compared to some earlier studies on QTL mapping where WR 315 was predominantly used as resistant parent (Sharma et al 2004;Gowda et al 2009;Sabbavarapu et al 2013).…”

Genetic diversity and population structure of Iranian isolates of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris, the causal agent of chickpea wilt, using ISSR and DAMD-PCR markers

“…Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. ciceris (FOC), a causal agent of chickpea wilt, is highly variable in morphology, virulence ability that consists of different races and pathotypes (Jendoubi et al 2017). Thus, study of the natural genetic diversity pattern is very fundamental for disease management.…”

“…The countries located in the Middle-East such as India, Turkey, Pakistan and Iran, are the major chickpea producers in Asia (Mohammadi, Talebi 2015). In Iran, chickpea production is low, which may be attributed to several abiotic and biotic stresses such as drought, cold and fungal diseases (Patil et al 2005;Jendoubi et al 2017). Fusarium wilt, caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp.…”

“…FOC symptoms can develop at any stage of plant growth with higher incidence during the flowering and pod filling stages (Jiménez-Díaz et al 2015;Jendoubi et al 2017). This pathogen is soil and seed-born and in the absence of the chickpea host, it can survive on plant debris in soil for more than six years (Haware et al 1978).…”

“…Based on disease symptoms, pathotypes can be divided into two groups as distinct yellow or wilting syndromes (Jiménez-Gasco et al 2004;Jiménez-Díaz et al 2015). The yellowing pathotype causes foliar yellowing, vascular discoloration and late plant death, while the wilting pathotype induces very fast chlorosis, vascular discoloration and early plant death (Jiménez-Fernández et al 2013;Jendoubi et al 2017). Based on disease severity and virulence of FOC isolated on a set of chickpea differential lines, eight distinct races of FOC (races 0, 1A, 1B/C, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6) have been identified (Jiménez-Gasco et al 2004;Sharma, Muehlbauer 2007).…”