Molecular Characterization,Morphology and Pathogenicity of Curvularia pseudobrachyspora,A New Causal Agent of Leaf Spot on Banana

[Objectives] The paper was to study molecular characterization, morphology and pathogenicity of Curvularia pseudobrachyspora, a new causal agent of leaf spot on banana. [Methods] Banana(Musa acuminate) leaves with streaks or long ellipse-shaped lesions were sampled in an orchard of Danzhou City, Hainan Province, China in 2021. Fungus isolates were isolated from the diseased tissues and further identified as C. pseudobrachyspora based on morphological characteristics of colony, conidiophore and spore, phylogenetic analyses of the ITS region, GAPDH and TEF-1α genes. [Results] In the pathogenicity test, the fungus re-isolated from inoculated leaves with necrotic lesions was identified morphologically and molecularly, fulfilling Koch’s postulates. [Conclusions] C. pseudobrachyspora is a new pathogen causing leaf spot of banana in China and the world.