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Characterization of Erwinia amylovora strains from Hungary

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Abstract

Erwinia amylovora is the causative agent of fire blight, which is a destructive bacterial disease of rosaceous plants. In Hungary Erwinia amylovora (Burrill) Winslow et al. was first detected in 1996. Since the appearance of fire blight, E. amylovora samples have been collected from different host plats from various geographic locations. A motif of eight nucleotides (ATTACAGA) is repeated 3–15 times in the PstI fragment of the pEa29 plasmid in Erwinia amylovora strains, and represents a valuable tool for strain classification. The number of short-sequence DNA repeats in plasmid pEa29 of 30 Hungarian isolates were determined by PCR assays and they ranged from five to ten. The SSR test is suitable for distinguishing the individual strains between the E. amylovora isolates. The examined isolates showed high pathogenicity on immature pear fruits. Several biochemical techniques, such as miniaturized API 20E, were applied on the samples. Differences were also revealed in microbiological assays like levan formation and colony morphology on semi-selective media. Examining the Hungarian Erwinia amylovora population by molecular analysis we can draw the conclusion that the population consists of different strains, which shows great diversity. E. amylovora is a widespread pathogen in Hungary, which is supported by the 30 strains isolated from various host plants from many parts of the country. The phenotypic diversity-evaluation of the E. amylovora strains showed, that they differ metabolically, like other plant pathogenic bacteria as reported by several authors. This is the first report on the diversity of E. amylovora strains isolated from Hungary.

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Acknowledgments

This research was realized in the frames of TÁMOP 4.2.4. A/1-11-1-2012-0001 “National Excellence Program- Elaborating and operating an inland student and researcher personal support system”. The project was subsidized by the European Union and co-financed by the European Social Fund.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Plant Pathology, Szent István University, Ménesi út 44, Budapest, H-1118, Hungary

    Anita Végh, Éva Pájtli & László Palkovics

  2. Department of Pomology, Szent István University, Villányi út 29-43, Budapest, H-1118, Hungary

    Mária Hevesi

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  1. Anita Végh
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  2. Mária Hevesi
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  3. Éva Pájtli
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  4. László Palkovics
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Correspondence to László Palkovics.

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Végh, A., Hevesi, M., Pájtli, É. et al. Characterization of Erwinia amylovora strains from Hungary. Eur J Plant Pathol 147, 455–461 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10658-016-1001-z

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