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Greenhouse experiments were conducted to study the efficacy of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) for control of root rot (RR) in groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) caused by Macrophomina phaseolina and to test the ability of plant systemic acquired resistance (SAR) inducers and plant extracts to protect groundnut plants from late leaf spot (LLS) caused by Phaeoisariopsis personata. Seed treatment and soil application of a talc-based formulation of B. subtilis strain G1 significantly reduced the incidence of root rot under greenhouse conditions. In experiments with SAR inducers, foliar application of salicylic acid (SA) (7 mM) on 45 days after sowing significantly reduced LLS incidence and increased the pod yield. Foliar application of aqueous extract (10%) from leaves of Adhatoda vasica and zimmu (Allium sativum x A. cepa) on 45 days after sowing significantly decreased the LLS incidence and increased the pod yield compared with the untreated control. Field experiments were conducted to develop an integrated method for the management of LLS and RR of groundnut using the best performing PGPR, SAR inducer and plant extract in combinations. Combined application of B. subtilis strain G1 through seed (10 g/kg) and soil (2.5 kg/ha) followed by foliar application of A. vasica extract (10%) on 30, 45 and 60 days after sowing significantly reduced LLS and RR diseases in groundnut and increased the pod yield under field conditions. The above treatment resulted in significant reductions in the area under the disease progress curve (AUDPC) for LLS compared with that of untreated control. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is one of the important oilseed crops of the Indian subcontinent and fungal diseases like early leaf spot (ELS) and late leaf spot (LLS) caused by Cercospora arachidicola and Phaeoisariopsis personata, respectively, are major peanut cultivation constraints. Defensins are basically antimicrobial peptides that have been implicated in plant defense against various microbial attacks. Transgenic peanut plants, developed through Agrobacterium mediated transformation of de-embryonated cotyledons and overexpressing a synthetic defensin fusion gene from fenugreek (Tfgd2) and radish (RsAFP2) linked by a linker peptide, were found to have enhanced resistance to the ELS and LLS infection over the wild type (cv. GG 20). Both transformed and untransformed lines were characterized for leaf spot diseases using a detached leaf assay. PCR and RT-PCR analyses confirmed stable integration and expression of these genes in peanut transgenics. This investigation provides further evidence that a fusion product of two plant defensins can be successfully implemented as a means of imparting resistance to multiple fungal pathogens through genetic engineering in peanut. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Late leaf spot is a serious disease of peanut caused by the imperfect fungus, Phaeoisariopsis personata. Wild diploid species, Arachis diogoi. is reported to be highly resistant to this disease and asymptomatic. The objective of this study is to investigate the molecular responses of the wild peanut challenged with the late leaf spot pathogen using cDNA-AFLP and 2D proteomic study. A total of 233 reliable, differentially expressed genes were identified in Arachis diogoi. About one third of the TDFs exhibit no significant similarity with the known sequences in the data bases. Expressed sequence tag data showed that the characterized genes are involved in conferring resistance in the wild peanut to the pathogen challenge. Several genes for proteins involved in cell wall strengthening, hypersensitive cell death and resistance related proteins have been identified. Genes identified for other proteins appear to function in metabolism, signal transduction and defence. Nineteen TDFs based on the homology analysis of genes associated with defence, signal transduction and metabolism were further validated by quantitative real time PCR (qRT-PCR) analyses in resistant wild species in comparison with a susceptible peanut genotype in time course experiments. The proteins corresponding to six TDFs were differentially expressed at protein level also. Differentially expressed TDFs and proteins in wild peanut indicate its defence mechanism upon pathogen challenge and provide initial breakthrough of genes possibly involved in recognition events and early signalling responses to combat the pathogen through subsequent development of resistivity. This is the first attempt to elucidate the molecular basis of the response of the resistant genotype to the late leaf spot pathogen, and its defence mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Late leaf spot (LLS), caused by Phaeoisariopsis personata, is an important foliar fungal disease of groundnut ( Arachis hypogaea L.), which causes significant economic losses globally to the crop. Inheritance of resistance to LLS disease was studied in three crosses and their reciprocals involving two resistant interspecific derivatives and a susceptible cultivar to refine strategy for LLS resistance breeding. The traits associated with LLS resistance, measured both in the field and under controlled conditions were studied following generation mean analysis. Results suggested that resistance to LLS is controlled by a combination of both, nuclear and maternal gene effects. Among nuclear gene effects, additive effect controlled majority of the variation. In JL 24 × ICG 11337 cross and its reciprocal only additive effects were important, while in JL 24 × ICG 13919 cross and its reciprocal, both additive and dominance effects contributed to the variation. Among digenic epistatic effects, additive × dominance interactions were significant. Additive-maternal effects were significant in both the crosses, while dominance-maternal effects also contributed to the variation in the crosses between the parents, JL 24 and ICG 13919. Due to significant contribution of additive effects of both nuclear and maternal inheritance to resistance to LLS, the parent, ICG 11337 would be a good donor in breeding programs. It would be worthwhile to use the resistance donor as female parent to tap maternal effects of resistance to LLS. Disease score is the best selection criterion in the field for use in breeding programs because of its high heritability and ease in measurement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Chemical and biological approaches have been adopted to increase the growth and yield of crops and reduce loss due to diseases. We have adopted an integrated approach, where both direct antagonism and induced resistance were combined to reduce the incidence of late leaf spot (LLS) disease in groundnut caused by Phaeoisariopsis personata. Chitinolytic chlorothalonil-tolerant soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis SFC24 (Bt SFC24) was manipulated in vitro to express secretable form of elicitor protein harpinPss of Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae. Severity of the LLS decreased by 65% when the leaves were sprayed with B. thuringiensis expressing harpinPss (Bt-pss). As seed treatment, there was an increase in growth of groundnut. Bt and Bt-pss accounted to 13% and 36% increase in shoot length. Expression of a secretable form of harpinPss thus improved the ability of B. thuringiensis SFC24 to promote growth and control LLS in groundnut. In this new approach a chlorothalonil-tolerant chitinolytic bacterium was genetically engineered to secrete elicitor harpinPss for dual benefit of growth promotion and disease control. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

ngular leaf spot (ALS) is one of the major diseases of the common bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris L .). Different sources of resistance have been identified but few have been characterized. Studies were conducted to elucidate the inheritance of ALS resistance in the bean accession G10909 and to identify molecular markers linked to these genes. Evaluation of parental genotypes, F, F and backcross to susceptible parent (Sprite) populations revealed that two dominant and complementary genes conditioned ALS resistance. Allelism tests showed that the ALS resistance genes in G10909 were different from those in the Mesoamerican cultivars Mexico 54, MAR 2, G10474 and Cornell 49-242. Three sequence-characterized amplified region (SCAR) markers, PF13, PF9 and OPE04, and a microsatellite, Pv-gaat001, segregated in coupling with the resistance genes in G10909. Pairwise segregation analysis revealed that markers PF13, PF9 and OPE04 were linked, while Pv-gaat001 segregated in a 9:3:3:1 ratio from all markers. Markers PF13, PF9 and OPE04 were mapped to linkage group B08, and segregated with resistance gene Phg at 4.9, 7.4 and 9.9 cM, respectively. Pv-gaat001, previously mapped to linkage group B04, segregated with resistance gene Phg at 13 cM. The potential utility of these markers to aid breeding for ALS resistance is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The high incidence of various soil-borne and foliar diseases is a major production constraint in the profitable cultivation of French bean. Compost and compost teas have been widely explored as an eco-friendly option for controlling plant diseases in container mixes. However, there is limited information regarding their disease suppressive potential under field conditions especially against diseases of French bean. The aim of this study was to investigate the suppressive potential of six composted substrates (farmyard manure, poultry manure, vermicompost, spent mushroom compost, Lantana camara and Urtica sp.), in comparison to a recommended chemical fungicide (carbendazim), against soil-borne and foliar diseases of French bean under the conditions of western Indian Himalayas. The field experiment was conducted over two growing seasons and the composts applied as a soil amendment and later as foliar sprays of their fermented extracts. There was a high level of root rot suppression (>33%) in the poultry manure, Lantana and Urtica compost treatments in both experimental years and these treatments were on par with the chemical seed treatment. All the compost treatments showed a moderate but significant reduction (>20%) in angular leaf spot severity also but none was comparable to that of chemical sprays. There was considerable variability in the suppressiveness of different composts. Overall, poultry manure, composted Urtica sp. and composted Lantana camara treatments were superior to other composts in suppressing both Rhizoctonia root rot (Rhizoctonia solani Kühn) and angular leaf spot (Phaeoisariopsis griseola (Sacc.) Ferraris). The different compost treatments exerted a significant effect on the population of Trichoderma spp. and fluorescent pseudomonads in the plant rhizosphere. The highest population of these antagonists was recovered from poultry manure and Urtica compost treatments indicating that it may be a major factor contributing towards the higher disease reduction observed in these treatments. All composts increased yield over the control with maximum yields recorded in poultry manure and Urtica treatments. Although Lantana compost suppressed disease, the yield levels in this treatment were quite low indicating that the compost may be phytotoxic. Our results suggest that application of composts and compost extracts derived from poultry manure and Urtica sp. has the potential to provide effective control of diseases and improve yield in bean under field conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

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Angular leaf spot is one of the major diseases of the common bean. The extensive genetic variability of this pathogen requires the constant development of new resistant cultivars. Different sources of resistance have been identified and characterized. For the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil, four main resistance sources were found: Mexico 54, AND 277, MAR 2 and Cornell 49-242. Independent characterization of these genotypes demonstrates that resistance in all four sources is dominant and monogenic. However, there are no studies on the relationship and independence of these genes. In the present work, allelism tests were carried out to understand the relationship among the resistance genes present in these four resistance sources. The data revealed a much higher complexity in the resistance inheritance of these genes than previously reported. It was demonstrated that Cornell 49-242 possesses a dominant gene ( Phg-3); Mexico 54 possesses three genes, denominated Phg-2, Phg-5 and Phg-6. In MAR 2, two genes were found, one independent designated Phg-4 and the other, an allelic form of Phg-5, denominated of Phg-52. Allelic forms were also found in AND 277, Phg-22, Phg-32 and Phg-42. These results have special importance for breeding programs aiming to pyramid resistance genes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Late leaf spot (LLS), caused by Phaeoisariopsis personata, is a foliar disease of groundnut or peanut (Arachis hypogaea) with high economic and global importance. Antifungal and chitinolytic Bacillus circulans GRS 243 and Serratia marcescens GPS 5, selected among a collection of 393 peanut-associated bacteria, were applied as a prophylactic foliar spray and tested for control of LLS. Chitin-supplemented application of B. circulans GRS 243 and S. marcescens GPS 5 resulted in improved biological control of LLS disease. Supplementation of bacterial cells with 1% (wt/vol) colloidal chitin reduced lesion frequency by 60% compared with application of bacterial cells alone, in the greenhouse. Chitin-supplemented application of GRS 243 and GPS 5 also resulted in improved and stable control of LLS in a repeated field experiment and increased the pod yields by 62 and 75%, respectively, compared with the control. Chitin-supplemented application of GPS 5 was tested in six on-farm trials, and the increase in pod yields was up to 48% in kharif (rainy season). A 55-kDa chitinase was purified from the cell-free culture filtrate of GPS 5 by affinity chromatography and gel filtration. Purified chitinase of S. marcescens GPS 5 (specific activity 120 units) inhibited the in vitro germination of P. personata conidia, lysed the conidia, and effectively controlled LLS in greenhouse tests, indicating the importance of chitinolysis in biological control of LLS disease by GPS 5. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Angular leaf spot disease of common bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris), caused by Phaeoisariopsis griseola, is one of the most important disease of this crop in Brazil. Control strategies for the disease include cultural practices, chemical control and genetic resistance. This pathogen is known to vary greatly in pathogenicity. For durable use of genetic resistance to control this disease, it is necessary to manage resistant cultivars by taking into account the population structure of P. griseola. Isolates of the pathogen from Goias, Brazil exhibited an important virulence polymorphism when inoculated on 12 differential cultivars. A total of 13 pathotypes was identified within a series of 96 isolates collected in Inhumas and Damolandia counties. Only pathotypes 63-15, 63-23, 63-31 and 63-63 were identified in both counties. Since all the isolates were capable of inducing disease in both Andean and Mesoamerican differential cultivars, they were considered to be of Mesoamerican origin. Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis performed on the same 96 isolates revealed a great genetic diversity clustering the series into five groups at an Euclidean distance of 62.5%. Although the results did not show any clustering according to the isolate origin, it was possible to observe a tendency of the isolates to cluster in different groups according to their origin. No pathotype-specific band was observed in the present study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Genetic diversity of 50 Phaeoisariopsis griseola isolates collected from different agroecological zones in Kenya was studied using group-specific primers and amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers. Group-specific primers differentiated the isolates into Andean and Mesoamerican groups, corresponding to the two common-bean gene pools. Significant polymorphisms were observed with all the AFLP primer combinations used, reflecting a wide genetic diversity in the P. griseola population. A total of 207 fingerprints was generated, of which 178 were polymorphic. Cluster analysis of the polymorphic bands also separated the isolates into the two groups defined by groupspecific primers. All the isolates examined were grouped into three virulence populations; Andean, Afro-Andean and Mesoamerican, and their genetic diversity measured. On average, greater diversity (91%) was detected within populations than between populations (9%). The genetic distance between Andean and Mesoamerican populations was higher (D = 0.0269) than between Andean and Afro-Andean (D = 0.0095). The wide genetic diversity reported here has significant implications in breeding for resistance to angular leaf spot and should be taken into consideration when screening and deploying resistant bean genotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Common beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) are separated into two distinct groups: Andean and Middle American. We identified CAL 143 as the first Andean bean with resistance to angular leaf spot disease caused by Phaeoisariopsis griseola. Angular leaf spot is the most widespread and economically important bean disease in southern and eastern Africa, and it is especially severe on the extensively grown Andean beans. Cal 143 was resistant in Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia, but it was susceptible in Uganda. This was attributed to the presence of races of P. griseola in Uganda not present in the other countries. We identified two additional Andean bean lines, AND 277 and AND 279, with resistance to angular leaf spot in Malawi. We also characterized the virulence diversity of 15 isolates of P. griseola from southern and eastern Africa into nine different races. Five of six isolates from Malawi and two of seven from Uganda, obtained from large-seeded Andean beans, were characterized into four different races considered Andean. These were compatible only or mostly with large-seeded Andean cultivars. The other eight isolates from Uganda, Malawi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, obtained from a small- or medium-seeded Middle American beans, were characterized into five different Middle American races. These were compatible with Middle American and Andean cultivars. CAL 143 was resistant or intermediate under greenhouse conditions to all but one of the same 15 isolates from southern and eastern Africa, but it was susceptible to an isolate from Uganda obtained from a medium-seeded Middle American bean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Angular leaf spot (ALS) is one of the most devastating diseases of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) in tropical and subtropical countries. The causal fungus, Phaeoisariopsis griseola (Sacc.) Ferr. is highly variable and a diverse source of resistance genes is required to manage this disease. We evaluated a common bean core collection, primary and secondary gene pools and lines derived from inter-specific crosses of P. vulgaris and P. coccineus or P. polyanthus (secondary gene pool) for resistance to angular leaf spot. Of the 1441 accessiones in the core collection, only 2.2% were resistant to both Andean and Mesoamerican races of P. griseola, 28% were resistant only to Andean and 9% to Mesoamerican races. Of the 32 resistant accessions, 68% originated from Bolivia, Colombia, Guatemala and Mexico. More accessions from these countries should be examined for P. griseola reaction. Very few wild P. vulgaris accessions (4%), were resistant to ALS. In contrast, high levels of resistance (62%) were found in the secondary gene pool. Among the 1010 lines from inter-specific crosses, 109 lines were highly resistant. These genotypes from the primary and secondary common bean gene pools resistant to Andean and Mesoamerican races of P. griseola offer a potential for developing broad and durable ALS resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The genetic and virulence variability of 112 isolates of Phaeoisariopsis griseola , collected from various locations in Central America, were studied using seven random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) primers and 12 common-bean differential genotypes. Broad molecular diversity (H = 0·92) among isolates was found using RAPD markers. Fifty pathotypes were identified on 12 differential bean genotypes, 29 of which were represented by only one isolate. Only 18 pathotypes were found in two or more countries. Pathotype 63-63 was the most virulent and caused leaf spots on all 12 common-bean differential genotypes. Comparison of virulence phenotypes and RAPD profiles to known Andean P. griseola isolates confirmed that all isolates belonged to the Mesoamerican group. Pairwise comparison between individual RAPD loci showed that the majority were in gametic phase linkage disequilibrium, revealing that P. griseola maintains a genetic structure that is consistent with asexual reproduction. The molecular and virulence diversities of P. griseola isolates from Central America imply that using single resistance genes to manage angular leaf spot is inadequate and stacking resistance genes may be necessary to manage the disease effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Infection and spread of Phaeoisariopsis griseola in the leaf of bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) were investigated by scanning and transmission electron microscopy. Conidia of P. griseola germinated by releasing a germ tube either at one end of the conidia or both ends. The germ-tube growth followed the contours of epidermal cells. The fungus entered the leaf through the stomata and grew mainly intercellularly between mesophyll and palisade cells. The chloroplast envelope and plasma membrane of adjacent cells disintegrated, lost structural integrity and dried out. Hyphae did not penetrate host cells. A stroma subsequently formed on the leaf surface. Conidiophores elongated under favourable conditions forming synnemata with conidia at the tips of conidiophores. Conidiophores also emerged through stomata. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Controlled-environment studies of conidial production by Phaeoisariopsis personata on groundnut are described. With constant relative humidity (RH), conidia were only produced above a threshold (945% RH) and there was a linear increase between 945% RH and 100% RH. Conidial production was less with continuous leaf wetness (resembling heavy dew) than with continuous 98-99% RH, built was similar with intermittent leaf wetness and intermittent 98-99% RH (8 h at 70% RH each day). With alternate high (≥97% RH) and low humidity. daily conidial production depended both on the duration of high RH and on the low RH value. With 99% RH at night (12 h), nighttime conidial production decreased with the previous daytime RH. After conidial production had started, small numbers of conidia were produced even when the RH was well below the threshold (94.5%). Conidia were produced in continuous light when the photon flux density was 2 μmol/m²/s, but production was completely inhibited with 60 μmol/m²/s. With constant RH. more conidia were produced with a 12 h photoperiod than in continuous darkness. However, more than 75% of the conidia were produced in the dark. With continuous darkness, more conidia were produced during the night (18.00-06.00 h) than during the day. but this biological rhythm was overcome with a (light-night)/(dark-day) regime. With constant 98-99% RH there was a linear increase in conidial production with temperature between 10 and 28°C. and virtually no conidia were produced at 33°C. The daily production of conidia increased with time for 2 to 6 days, depending on the treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The construction of a set of controlled-humidity chambers for single plants is described. Accurate control of relative humidity (rh) between 40% and 99% was achieved by mixing dry air with a saturated air stream using solenoid valves controlled by a programmable data logger. At values of r.h. >90%, mean values over periods greater than 1 mm were constant to within ±0.1% and spot measurements at 3s intervals were within 03% of the mean value. The system responded to a step change of r.h. in about 6-10mm and diurnal changes of r.h. were reproduced, similar to those observed in nature. The stability of control made it possible to differentiate between the requirement of liquid water and very high humidity (98% r.h.) for conidial germination and subsequent infection of groundnut by Phaeoisariopsis personata the cause of late leaf spot disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The effect of temperature on the latent periods of rust, late leaf spot and early leaf spot diseases of groundnut caused by Puccinia arachidis, Phaeoisariopsis personata and Cercospora arachidicola, respectively, was studied. The latent periods (LP) of rust, late leaf spot and early leaf spot ranged from 12-49 days, 13-38 days and 13-39days, respectively, between 12 °C and 33 °C An equation relating the rate of pathogen development (1/LP) to temperature was fitted using daily mean temperatures to provide three cardinal temperatures: the minimum (T min), optimum (Topt), and maximum (Tmin)- Tmin was about 12°C for rust and about 10°C for the two leaf-spot diseases. T opt, for all three diseases was close to 25°C. Tmax was 31°C for early leaf spot, and extrapolated values for late leaf spot and rust were about 35 and 40°C, respectively. For P. personata, a temperature response curve was fitted using data only from controlled environment experiments. This curve was used to simulate latent periods from both mean daily and mean hourly temperatures in the field. There was substantially better agreement between observed and simulated latent period with hourly temperatures, provided the developmental rate of the pathogen was determined at a constant temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Experiments are described to quantify the effects of temperature and leaf wetness duration on infection of groundnut by Phaeoisariopsis personata. Temperature response curves for conidial germination and infection were similar, with optima close to 20° C and minimum and maximum temperatures of about 8 °C and 34 °C. respectively. The effect of temperature on infection between 15 °C and 26 °C was slight. Lesions developed only if the leaf wetness period exceeded about 20 h, and the total wetness period necessary for maximum infection exceeded 160 h. The number of lesions resulting from a fixed amount of inoculum was several times greater if leaves were exposed to alternate wet and dry periods (intermittent wetness), compared with continuous wetness. With intermittent wetness the length of the dry period had little effect on the number of lesions, providing it exceeded 2 h. The response curve relating total wetness periods to lesion density was an exponential asymptote. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The following names are recommended for conservation: Pseudocercospora against Stigniina and Phaeoisariopsis; Boletus applanatus against B. lipsiensis; Lyophyllum with L. semitale as conserved type; Roccellina against Roccellaria; Psilocybe with P. semilanceata as conserved type; Calvalia nom. cons. against Lanopila; and Phaeographis against Cre ographa, Ectographis, Flegographa, Hymenodecton, Plalygramma, and Pyrographa and with P. dendritica as conserved type. As a result of reference under Art. 32.4, the Committee recommends that the descriptive statement accompanying publication of Ascomycota Cavalier-Smith be considered adequate for valid publication but recommends that that for Blastocladiomycota Doweld should not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L) is one of the widely cultivated and leading oilseed crops of the world and its yields are greatly affected by various biotic and abiotic stresses. Arachis diogoi, a wild relative of peanut, is an important source of genes for resistance against various stresses that affect peanut. In our previous study a thaumatin-like protein gene was found to be upregulated in a differential expression reverse transcription PCR (DDRT-PCR) study using the conidial spray of the late leaf spot pathogen, Phaeoisariopsis personata. In the present study, the corresponding full length cDNA was cloned using RACE-PCR and has been designated as AdTLP. It carried an open reading frame of 726 bp potentially capable of encoding a polypeptide of 241 amino acids with 16 conserved cysteine residues. The semi-quantitative RT-PCR analysis showed that the transcript level of AdTLP increased upon treatment with the late leaf spot pathogen of peanut, P. personata and various hormone treatments indicating its involvement in both, biotic and abiotic stresses. The antifungal activity of the purified recombinant protein was checked against different fungal pathogens, which showed enhanced anti-fungal activity compared to many other reported TLP proteins. The recombinant AdTLP-GFP fusion protein was found to be predominantly localized to extracellular spaces. Transgenic tobacco plants ectopically expressing AdTLP showed enhanced resistance to fungal pathogen, Rhizoctonia solani. The seedling assays showed enhanced tolerance of AdTLP transgenic plants against salt and oxidative stress. The transcript analysis of various defense related genes highlighted constitutively higher level expression of PR1a, PI-I and PI-II genes in transgenic plants. These results suggest that the AdTLP is a good candidate gene for enhancing stress resistance in crop plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article highlights a proposal to conserve the name Pseudocercospora against Stigmina and Phaeoisariopsis. The authors explained why the names Stigmina, Phaeoisariopsis and Pseudocercospora should be merged. The origins of the names and the characteristics of the species bearing the names are discussed.

Presents an abstract of the study `A simple and economical method for pathotype differentiation of Phaeoisariopsis griseola on dry beans,' by M.M. Liebenberg which was presented at the 3rd annual congress of the South African Society for Plant Pathology held from January 15-18, 1995 in South Africa.

Presents an abstract of the study `Differentiation of pathotypes of Phaeoisariopsis griseola on dry beans in southern Africa,' by M.M. Liebenberg, Z.A. Pretorius et al presented at the 32nd annual congress of the South African Society for Plant Pathology held at the Aventura Vaal Spa, Christiana, South Africa from January 23-26, 1994.