Journal of Plant Pathology (2007) 89, S19-S20

F. Nigro, I. Pentimone, H. Barham and A. Ligorio (2007)
Partial characterization of the fow1 gene in Verticillium dahliae Kleb. isolates from olive trees
Journal of Plant Pathology 89 (3, Suppl.), S19-S20
Oral Presentation at S.I.Pa.V XIV National Meeting - Perugia, Italy 19-21 Sept. 2007
Abstract: Verticillium dahliae Kleb., the causal agent of a vascular wilt disease, is an economically important plant pathogen with worldwide distribution, severely affecting young olive trees. To date, the molecular mechanisms of pathogenicity and symptom induction by V. dahliae in olive trees remain largely unexplored, although some pathogenicity genes of the fungus have been recently identified and characterized. Improving knowledge on the V. dahliae pathogenicity could be useful for epidemiological studies and for developing effective control strategies. By using two primers (giFow1F-giFowR), designed on a conserved hypothetical mitochondrial protein of Gibberella zeae (XM381597), a 550 bp DNA fragment (VerFow1) was amplified from DNA extracted from several V. dahliae isolates, cloned and sequenced. Basic local alignment search tool (BLAST) of the fragment VerFow1 showed a considerable homology with a yeast and fungal hypothetical protein related to a mitochondrial carrier protein (MCPs). This protein is known for its role in the communication between the matrix and the cytosol, being essential in the eukaryotic metabolism. Particularly, sequence analysis revealed a 96% identity with the corresponding region of Fusarium oxysporum FOW1 gene (AB078975), encoding a mitochondrial protein that was identified and characterized as a virulence determinant, specifically required for the colonization of melon plants. Trials to determine the role of the fragment VerFow1 in the pathogenesis of V. dahliae on olive trees are in progress. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report on the characterization of a fungal hypothetical protein related to mitochondrial carriers in V. dahliae.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Database assignments for author(s): Franco Nigro

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
molecular biology - genes

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Verticillium dahliae	Olive (Olea europaea)