Host/parasite relationships between tomato and pathogenic isolates of Verticillium

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Abstract
SUMMARY: A close relationship was established between the virulence in the field of six isolates of Verticillium and their ability to penetrate and colonize sterile tomato seedlings grown in culture. The highly pathogenic species V. albo‐atrum and V. tricorpus rapidly colonized host tissue in culture, host reactions being absent or only slight. V. nigrescens and V. nubilum, mild pathogens, penetrated sterile roots more slowly and caused host reactions. The variation in pathogenicity in the field between two isolates of V. dahliae suggests that they are different physiological strains, but they induced no difference during the first stages of invasion‐reaction of sterile seedlings. Hyaline variants of all these isolates were less pathogenic than the original parent types.Variations in temperature from 25° C. (near optimum for the growth of both tomato plants and the fungi) caused changes in host reactions. Ability to penetrate was not affected within the pH range 4.0–8.0, but at extreme values (3.2, 9.4 and 10.0) all isolates entered without any host reaction. Variations in nitrogen supply to the pathogens induced modifications in their ability to penetrate, whereas changes in supply of nitrogen to the seedlings had no apparent effect upon host/parasite relations.The effects of simultaneous contact of non‐pathogenic and pathogenic isolates with seedling roots suggested that resistance of host tissue was controlled by the growing tip.