Digital droplet PCR quantification and field-scale spatial distribution of <i>Plasmopara viticola</i> oospores in vineyard soil.

ABSTRACT: Grapevine downy mildew, caused by the oomycete Plasmopara viticola, is one of the most devastating diseases affecting grapevine worldwide. Primary inoculum (i.e., oospores) plays a decisive role in downy mildew epidemics, but we still know very little about its abundance in vineyard soil. This study presents a novel molecular method for quantifying P. viticola oospore concentration in vineyard soil using digital droplet PCR (ddPCR). The development of this method enabled the characterization of both the abundance and spatial distribution of oospores in a vineyard at the onset of the growing season. Following a regular grid, a total of 198 soil samples (0-15 cm horizon) were collected in March 2022 in grapevine rows in a 0.22 ha vineyard planted with cv. Merlot and conducted a

SUBMITTER: Poeydebat C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12724222 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature