Identification and Pathogenicity Assay of Hyphomycetous Fungi Associated with Wheat Root and Crown Rot in Zanjan Province

Wheat as the most strategic agricultural crop has an important role in food security, and so the most cultivation area among the agronomic crops, belongs to wheat. Fungi associated with root and crown of wheat, are effective on crop production and yield. Therefore, in order to identify mycobiota of wheat root and crown in Zanjan province, sampling was carried out from 58 rainfed and irrigated wheat fields during cultivation season of 2011. Out of 286 fungal isolates obtained, 248 isolates belonged to hyphomycetes as identified morphologically. Sequence data of ITSrDNA region was used to confirm the identify of the isolates. Accoreding 10 genera and 23 species of Alternaria alternata, A. atrum, A. chlamydospora A. tenuissima, Aspergillus auricomus, A. niger, Bipolaris sorokiniana, Botrytis cinerea., Curvularia australiensis, C. inaequalis, Fusarium acuminatum, F. avenaceum, F. chlamydosporum, F. equiseti, F. redolens, F. sambucium, F. scirpi, F. solani, F. tricinctum, Microdochium nivale, Periconia circinata, Penicillium chrysogenum, Trichoderma atroviride were identified. Pathogenicity test of some fungal isolates were conducted based on completely randomized design with three replications under greenhouse condition. According to the results B. cinerea, B. sorokiniana, F. avenaceum, F. acuminatum, P. circinata, C. australiensis, F. equiseti, F. solani and A. chlamydospora caused disease with different severity on their host. Among the species, B. cinerea, B. sorokiniana, F. avenaceum and F. acuminatum caused visible root necrosis. A. auricomus was isolated for the first time from wheat rhizosphere in Iran. This study is the first report of A. tenuissima, B. cinerea, C. inaequalis, E. chlamydospora, F. avenaceum, F. chlamydosporum, F. scirpi, F. tricinctum, M. nivale (= F. nivale), P. circinata, P. chrysogenum and T. atroviride from Zanjan province. Also this is the first report of the pathogenicity of B. cinerea on wheat in Iran.