New Fungi Associated with Blackberry Root Rot (Rubus spp.), in Michoacán, Mexico

Abstract

Los Reyes, Michoacán, Mexico, is one of the main blackberry-producing places in the world, however, the disease located at the root level has caused important economic losses. Currently has been reported that the fungus Fusarium spp., is the main causal agent but actions to control it have failed. The objective of this work was to identify the possible presence of unreported pathogenic fungi in the root system of the blackberry and identify them molecularly. It was sampled in a commercial open-air orchard from Los Reyes, pieces of roots were taken from symptomatic plants with wilting and decay. The fungi were isolated in the laboratory, identified with taxonomic keys, extraction was performed, and the sequences obtained were compared with those reported in the NCBI gene bank. Among the results obtained were Kalmusia italica, Epicoccum nigrum, Microsphaeropsis arundinis, Achizophyllum commune, and, as expected, some species of Fusarium spp.