Archivio Journal of Plant Pathology

Abstract:

Bacterial spot of pepper and tomato plants is one of the most important constraints limiting crops yield in Bulgaria and Macedonia. Therefore, early identification of the pathogen is necessary for the control and prevention of the disease. In order to explore the strength of 16S-23S ITS rDNA PCR-RFLP as an approach for identification and differentiation of the causative agents of bacterial spot 262 Bulgarian and Macedonian strains pathogenic of pepper and tomato plants were used. The strains were previously identified as Xanthomonas euvesicatoria (132 strains), Xanthomonas vesicatoria (115 strains), and Xanthomonas gardneri (15 strains). Each restriction analysis resulted in two profiles that grouped the used strains. The restriction with AluI endonuclease differentiated X. vesicatoria isolates from the other three species. The enzyme HpaII separated the X. euvesicatoria strains. A combination of three restriction endonucleases (AluI, MboI, HpaII) successfully differentiated the four species described as causative agents of bacterial spot.