title: Molecular identification of the turf grass rapid blight pathogen.
abstract: Rapid blight is a newly described disease on turf grasses, primarily found on golf courses using suboptimal water for irrigation purposes. On the basis of shared morphological characteristics, it has been proposed that the rapid blight pathogen belongs to a genus of stramenopiles, Labyrinthula, which had been known to cause disease of marine plants only. We have collected 10 isolates from four species of turf grass in five states and sequenced portions of the SSU (18S) rDNA gene from each to provide a definitive taxonomic placement for rapid blight pathogens. We also included sequences from Labyrinthuloides yorkensis, Schizochytrium aggregatum, Aplanochytrium sp., Thraustochytrium striatum, Achlya bisexualis and several nonturf-grass isolates of Labyrinthula. We found that rapid blight isolates indeed are placed firmly within the genus Labyrinthula and that they lack detectable genetic diversity in the 18S rDNA region. We propose that the rapid blight pathogens share a recent common ancestor and might have originated from a single, infected population.
authors.affiliation: Center for Integrated Fungal Research, Department of Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh 27695, USA. kdcraven@ncsu.edu
authors.forename: K D
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Craven
authors.forename: P D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Peterson
authors.forename: D E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Windham
authors.forename: T K
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Mitchell
authors.forename: S B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Martin
mesh_terms: D020459:Genes, rRNA; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009235:Myxomycetes / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000472:pathogenicity; D010802:Phylogeny; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D006109:Poaceae / Q000382:microbiology*; D012337:RNA, Ribosomal, 18S / Q000235:genetics; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D035962:Zosteraceae / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D012337:RNA, Ribosomal, 18S