• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.445-451
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• 2023

Zamioculcas zamiifolia is a popular indoor ornamental plant in Korea. In August 2021, a severe outbreak of soft rot disease affected Z. zamiifolia in Emseong, Chungcheongbuk-do, Korea. Infected plants displayed wilting, water-soaked lesions, stem collapse, and green-brown discoloration. The bacterial strain KNUB-05-21 was isolated from infected stems and identified as Pectobacterium aroidearum using 16S rRNA nucleotide sequencing and multilocus sequence analysis based on partial sequences of dnaX, leuS, and recA genes. Confirmation of its affiliation with P. aroidearum was also obtained through biochemical and morphological characterization. To confirm the pathogenicity of strain KNUB-05-21, its suspension was injected into Z. zamiifolia stems. Within a week, soft rot developed on the stems, exhibiting symptoms similar to those observed in field-infected plants. The reisolated strain was identical to those of P. aroidearum. Before this study, P. aroidearum was not reported as a causative pathogen of Z. zamiifolia soft rot in Korea.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.88-94
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• 2024

In July 2021, symptoms of soft rot were observed on the stems of Ficus carica in Yeongam, Jeollanamdo, Korea. To accurately diagnose the cause, infected stem was collected and bacterial strain was isolated. Among these, the pathogenic strain KNUB-08-21 was identified as Pectobacterium aroidearum through 16S rRNA gene sequencing and phylogenetic analysis based on the concatenated sequences of the dnaX, leuS, and recA genes. The affiliation of the isolate with this bacterial species was also confirmed by its biochemical characteristics obtained using API ID 32 GN system. Artificial inoculation confirmed the strain's pathogenicity in figs, causing significant damage to both stems and fruits. To our knowledge, this is the first report of P. aroidearum causing soft rot disease in F. carica in Korea.