Project description:Moniliophthora perniciosa is the causal agent of cacao Witche´s broom disease. This disease has been causing extensive damages to Brazilian cacao plantation, especially in Southern Bahia. Using glass slides microarrays, we analyzed the expression profile of 3872 whole genome shotgun reads from M. perniciosa genome, comparing two stages of development (Biotrophic-like mycelia and saprotrophic mycelia). Keywords: Moniliophthora perniciosa, Witches Broom Disease, Pathogenesis, Cacao
Project description:Moniliophthora perniciosa is the causal agent of cacao Witche´s broom disease. This disease has been causing extensive damages to Brazilian cacao plantation, especially in Southern Bahia. Using glass slides microarrays, we analyzed the expression profile of 3872 whole genome shotgun reads from M. perniciosa genome, comparing two stages of development (Biotrophic-like mycelia and saprotrophic mycelia). Keywords: Moniliophthora perniciosa, Witches Broom Disease, Pathogenesis, Cacao
Project description:Nitrogen-fixing shrubby legumes in the Mediterranean area partly overcome nutrient limitations by making use of soil N and atmospheric N₂ sources. Their ability to switch between different sources lets them adjust to the carbon costs pertaining to N acquisition throughout the year. We investigated the utilization of different inorganic N sources by Cytisus balansae and Cytisus striatus, shrubby legumes under low and a sufficient (5 and 500 µM P, respectively) levels of P. Plants grew in sterile sand, supplied with N-free nutrient solution and inoculated with effective Bradyrhizobium strains; other treatments consisted of plants treated with (i) 500 µM NH₄NO₃; and (ii) 500 µM NH₄NO₃ and inoculation with effective rhizobial strains. The application of NH₄NO₃ always resulted in greater dry biomass production. Carbon construction costs were higher in plants that were supplied with mineral and symbiotic N sources and always greater in the endemic C. striatus. Photosynthetic rates were similar in plants treated with different sources of N although differences were observed between the two species. Non-fertilized inoculated plants showed a neat dependence on N₂ fixation and had more effective root nodules. Results accounted for the distribution of the two species with regards to their ability to use different N sources.
