Further progress on wheat blast epidemiology: Identification of novel alternate hosts of Magnaporthe oryzae Triticum pathotype in Paraguay

Wheat blast, caused by Magnaporthe oryzae , is considered a threat to wheat production globally. Yet, several epidemiological aspects of the disease are poorly understood. To elucidate these aspects, cross infection studies and molecular markers were utilized to identify alternate hosts (AH) that allow the permanence of M. oryzae pathotype Triticum in the wheat fields. Twenty-seven isolates from different weed species and six isolates from wheat were inoculated from the leaves of a blast susceptible wheat cultivar Caninde 11. Pot-2a, MoT3, Mo.T6098 and Mo.T6099 markers were used for the molecular diagnosis of the pathogen. Amplified fragments with the MoT3 marker were sequenced and aligned with the WB12 region used as reference sequence. The presence of M. oryzae pathotype Triticum on Brachiaria sp. , Bromus catharticus , Lolium multiflorum, Avena strigosa and Eleusine indica is being reported for the first time.