Aquatic Plant Control Research Program: Host Specificity of Microbial Flora from Eurasian Watermilfoil

A laboratory assay was developed to evaluate microbial colonization of Eurasian watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum). The assay consisted of a 24-hr association phase of plants with inoculum, followed by two microbial growth cycles of 3 days each. The system was used to evaluate the colonization pot...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Andrews, John H, Harris, Robin F, Smith, Craig S, Chand, Tara
Format: Report
Language:English
Subjects:
ACREMONIUM CURVULUM
AQUATIC WEEDS
Biology
COLLECTOTRICHIUM GLOEOSPORIOIDES
COLONIES(BIOLOGY)
EPIPHYTES
FUNGI
HOST SPECIFICITY
HOSTS(BIOLOGY)
Microbiology
MYRIOPHYLLUM SPICATUM
PATHOGENIC MATERIALS
WATERMILFOIL
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Summary:A laboratory assay was developed to evaluate microbial colonization of Eurasian watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum). The assay consisted of a 24-hr association phase of plants with inoculum, followed by two microbial growth cycles of 3 days each. The system was used to evaluate the colonization potential of the fungi Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Acremonium curvulum, Cladosporium herbarum, Aureobasidium pullulans, Paecilomyces sp., and an unidentified sterile, septate fungus. The fungi differed in the extent to which they attached to watermilfoil and in their ability to grow in association with it. There were relatively few significant differences among the tightly attached fungal populations after 24 hr, but growth of the better colonizers led to a greater number of significant differences after 4 and 7 days. The milfoil pathogen C. gloeosphorioides, and A. curvulum, a fungus commonly found as an epiphyte on watermilfoil, were the two best colonizers. In host range tests, they were found to be nonspecific to milfoil. Aureobasidium pullulans was the only fungus that consistently failed to establish an increasing population on milfoil.