Occurrence of Colletotrichum acutatum, cause of strawberry anthracnose in Israel, and molecular differentiation among the Colletotrichum species complex

Strawberry anthracnose, caused by the the fungal pathogen Colletotrichum, was first detected in Israel in nurseries and fruiting crops in 1994. Based on morphological and cultural characteristics the species responsible for anthracnose was identified as C. acutatum. In 1995 the majority of strawberry nurseries were heavily infested with the pathogen which resulted in a major loss of transplants in field. The disease was subsequently diagnosed on flowers and on green and ripe fruit in November, 1995. Various molecular techniques were used for differentiation between C. acutatum and other Colletotrichum species (C. gloeosporioides and C. fragariae) responsible for strawberry anthracnose. Arbitrarily primed PCR (ap-PCR) using repetitive motif primers was the most reliable technique for rapid identification in vitro of strawberry anthracnose pathogens from Israel and the USA. Isolates of C. gloeosporioides and C. acutatum from a variety of hosts were also differentiated using ap-PCR.