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Phenotypic variation in the phenology of ascospore production between European populations of oak powdery mildew

Variabilité phénotypique dans la phénologie de la production d’ascospores entre populations européennes d’oïdium du chêne

Annals of Forest Science volume 66, page 814 (2009)Cite this article

Abstract

  • • Oak powdery mildew severity (Erysiphe alphitoides) is usually mild in Europe because epidemics start late in spring, at the end of the first oak growth unit maturation. However, the disease can occasionally be very severe when strong infection occurs early during the development of the first growth unit, suggesting that host-pathogen synchrony in spring could be a critical factor in disease severity.

  • • We studied the timing of ascospore production in a given environment for four E. alphitoides populations sampled from SW France to the Czech Republic to determine whether this trait shows variation within Europe.

  • • Timing of ascospore production was clearly influenced by environmental factors as chasmothecia from a single origin showed very different dates of optimal ascospore production when transferred for overwintering in locations with different climate. In common garden experiments, no differences were observed between populations for the date of optimal ascospore production.

  • • Results suggest little genetic differentiation for timing of ascospore production for E. alphitoides populations across Europe and therefore a lack of local adaptation to their host phenology. Availability in ascospore inoculum is limited during host budburst, explaining the low infection usually observed on the first oak growth unit.

Résumé

  • • L’oïdium du chêne (Erysiphe alphitoides) est généralement peu sévère en Europe, la maladie se développant tard au printemps, après le débourrement des chênes. E. alphitoides peut toutefois être sévère quand de fortes infections se produisent tôt durant le débourrement, suggérant que la synchronisation entre hôte et pathogène pourrait être un facteur déterminant la sévérité des épidémies.

  • • Nous avons caractérisé la dynamique de production d’ascospores dans un environnement donné pour quatre populations d’E. alphitoides échantillonnées du sud-ouest de la France à la République Tchèque pour tester si ce trait est variable en Europe.

  • • Des chasmothèces d’une même origine présentent des dates d’optima de production d’ascospores très différentes quand elles sont transférées durant l’hiver dans des zones à climats différents montrant que ce trait est sous dépendance de l’environnement. Par contre, les quatre populations ont la même date d’optimum de production d’ascospores quand elles sont placées dans un même environnement.

  • • Les résultats suggèrent que les populations d’E. alphitoides européennes ne sont pas différentiées génétiquement pour le timing de production d’ascospores et donc qu’elles ne sont pas localement adaptées à la phénologie de leur hôte. L’inoculum ascospores est très peu présent durant le débourrement, expliquant en partie l’absence d’infection sur la première unité de croissance des chênes.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. UMR1136 Interactions Arbres-Microorganismes, INRA, Nancy Université, 54240, Champenoux, France

    Benoit Marçais

  2. UMR1202 Biogeco, Équipe Pathologie forestière, INRA, 71 avenue Edouard Bourleaux, 33140, Villenave d’Ornon, France

    Miloslava Kavkova

  3. Faculty of Biology, Dpt. of botany, University of South Bohemia, Na Zlaté Stoce 1, 38005, České Budějovice, Czech republic

    Marie-Laure Desprez-Loustau

Authors
  1. Benoit Marçais
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  2. Miloslava Kavkova
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  3. Marie-Laure Desprez-Loustau
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Correspondence to Benoit Marçais.

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Marçais, B., Kavkova, M. & Desprez-Loustau, ML. Phenotypic variation in the phenology of ascospore production between European populations of oak powdery mildew. Ann. For. Sci. 66, 814 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1051/forest/2009077

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1051/forest/2009077

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Annals of Forest Science

ISSN: 1297-966X