• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.204-217
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• 2020

In nature, plants are always under the threat of pests and diseases. Pathogenic bacteria are one of the major pathogen types to cause diseases in diverse plants, resulting in negative effects on plant growth and crop yield. Chemical bactericides and antibiotics have been used as major approaches for controlling bacterial plant diseases in the field or greenhouse. However, the appearance of resistant bacteria to common antibiotics and bactericides as well as their potential negative effects on environment and human health demands bacteriologists to develop alternative control agents. Bacteriophages, the viruses that can infect and kill only target bacteria very specifically, have been demonstrated as potential agents, which may have no negative effects on environment and human health. Many bacteriophages have been isolated against diverse plant-pathogenic bacteria, and many studies have shown to efficiently manage the disease development in both controlled and open conditions such as greenhouse and field. Moreover, the specificity of bacteriophages to certain bacterial species has been applied to develop detection tools for the diagnosis of plant-pathogenic bacteria. In this paper, we summarize the promising results from greenhouse or field experiments with bacteriophages to manage diseases caused by plant-pathogenic bacteria. In addition, we summarize the usage of bacteriophages for the specific detection of plant-pathogenic bacteria.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.245-247
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• 2022

In August 2021, we surveyed diseases of wild vegetables grown in Taebaek, Gangwon Province, Korea. During the disease survey, we observed severe damping-off symptoms in young edible aster (Aster scaber) plants in a vinyl greenhouse investigated. The incidence of the disease in the plants ranged from 5% to 20%. Diseased plants of edible aster were collected from the vinyl greenhouse, and fungi were isolated from petiole lesions of the diseased plants. Rhizoctonia sp. was consistently isolated from the petiole lesions. We examined morphological characteristics and anastomosis groups of nine Rhizoctonia sp. isolates obtained from the petiole lesions. The examination results revealed that all the isolates corresponded to Rhizoctonia solani AG-4 based on the morphological characteristics and anastomosis test. Three isolates of R. solani AG-4 were tested for their pathogenicity on edible aster plants by artificial inoculation. Inoculation tests showed that the tested isolates caused damping-off symptoms on the inoculated plants. The induced symptoms were similar to those observed in the vinyl greenhouse investigated. Damping-off of edible aster caused by R. solani AG-4 is first reported in this study.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.1-10
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• 2023

The establishment of a laboratory assay and a greenhouse assay was conducted for evaluating the pathogenicity of Macrophomina phaseolina causing soybean charcoal rot established. In the laboratory assay, microsclerotia and hyphae were used as inoculum. In the laboratory assays using microsclerotia as an inoculum, disease incidences of M. phaseolina NSW17-108 and HSM17-034 were higher at 35℃ than 25℃. Of the two isolates NSW17-108 and HSM17-034, the disease incidence of HSM17-034 isolated from diseased sesame is higher than that of NSW17-108 isolated from diseased soybean. When the mycelia of M. phaseolina were used as an inoculum, the disease incidence of NSW17-108 and HSM17-034 at 35℃ exceeded 80% even after only 5 days of inoculation. Even at 25℃, furthermore, that of HSM17-034 exceeded 80% 5 days later. In the pathogenicity assays at a greenhouse, toothpicks where microsclerotia were produced or microsclerotia harvested from potato dextrose agar medium were used as an inoculum. In all greenhouse assays, M. phaseolina NSW17-108 and HSM17-034 showed 40-60% of disease incidences 35-65 days after inoculation with the pathogen, depending on the inoculation method. Between the two isolates, the pathogenicity of HSM17-034 was stronger than that of NSW17-108, and this result was consistent with laboratory assay results. Since the laboratory and greenhouse test methods tested in this study have different advantages and disadvantages depending on each test method, it is thought that the test method that can meet the purpose of the study should be selected and used.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.295-298
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• 2023

During a disease survey conducted in April 2022, we observed severe gray mold symptoms on inflorescences of mango trees (Mangifera indica) grown in a vinyl greenhouse in Jeju, Korea. The symptoms occurred on the flowers and peduncles, on which a lot of gray molds were formed. The incidence of gray mold on the inflorescences in the vinyl greenhouse ranged from 10% to 40%. Three fungal isolates were obtained from the lesions and identified as Botrytis cinerea based on their morphological characteristics and phylogenetic analysis. All isolates of B. cinerea were tested for their pathogenicity to inflorescences of mango trees through artificial inoculation. The pathogenicity of the isolates was confirmed on the flowers and peduncles. The symptoms induced by the isolates were similar to those on the inflorescences of mango trees observed in the disease survey. This is the first report of B. cinerea causing gray mold in mango in Korea.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.16-24
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• 2016

In this study, antifungal activity of essential oils of Cymbopogon citratus and Ocimum basilicum and two fungicides Mancozeb and Metalaxyl-Mancozeb in six different concentrations were investigated for controlling three species of Phytophthora, including P. capsici, P. drechsleri and P. melonis on pepper, cucumber and melon under in vitro and greenhouse conditions, respectively. Under the in vitro condition, the median effective concen- tration ($EC_{50}$) values (ppm) of plant essential oils and fungicides were measured. In greenhouse, soil infested with Phytophthora species was treated by adding 50 ml of essential oils and fungicides (100 ppm). Disease severity was determined after 28 days. Among two tested plant essential oils, C. citratus had the lowest $EC_{50}$ values for inhibition of the mycelial growth of P. capsici (31.473), P. melonis (33.097) and P. drechsleri (69.112), respectively. The mean $EC_{50}$ values for Metalaxyl-Mancozeb on these pathogens were 20.87, 20.06 and 17.70, respectively. Chemical analysis of plant essential oils by GC-MS showed that, among 42 compounds identified from C. citratus, two compounds ${\beta}$-geranial (${\alpha}$-citral) (39.16%) and z-citral (30.95%) were the most abundant. Under the greenhouse condition, Metalaxyl-Mancozeb caused the greatest reduction in disease severity, 84.2%, 86.8% and 92.1% on melon, cucumber, and pepper, respectively. The C. citratus essential oil reduced disease severity from 47.4% to 60.5% compared to the untreated control ($p{\leq}0.05$). Essential oils of O. basilicum had the lowest effects on the pathogens under in vitro and greenhouse conditions. These results show that essential oils may contribute to the development of new antifungal agents to protect the crops from Phytophthora diseases.

• Korean Journal of Medicinal Crop Science
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.198-206
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• 2015

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of sowing density, number of seeds sown per hole, and thinning treatment on growth characteristics and disease occurrence in Panax ginseng under direct sowing cultivation in a blue plastic greenhouse. Seedling were grown from 2 or 3 seeds sown, and the healthiest was only retained, while the rest were thinned out at the foliation stage. $NO_3$-N, $P_2O_5$, and organic matter content differed significantly between growth conditions in the plastic greenhouse and in conventional shade in the soil. Disease also tended to be higher in the conventional shade than in the plastic greenhouse. Plant height and stem length showed an increasing trend with increasing sowing density and number of seeds sown per hole. However, these measures noticeably decreased when thinning treatment was conducted. Growth of the subterranean part of ginseng was not markedly influenced by sowing density, the number of seeds sown per hole, or thinning treatment. Root weight, which is an important factor in yield, was significantly affected by the number of seeds sown and thinning treatment. Interestingly, root weight tended to be higher in the thinning treatment plot than the untreated control plot. Damping-off and root rot increased noticeably as the number of seeds sown increased. Disease also tended to be substantially higher in the thinning treatment plot than the untreated control. However, physiological disorder of the plants did not vary with sowing density, the number of seeds sown, or thinning treatment.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.325-333
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• 2015

The ventilation systems composed three types of side vent (roll-up) 'SV', side vent+roof vent 'SV+RV', and side vent+roof fan 'SV+RF' with 7.5 m spacing, with specific set point temperatures for ventilation: SV ($35^{\circ}C$ open / $33^{\circ}C$ close), SV+RV or SV+RH ($35^{\circ}C$ open/$33^{\circ}C$ close for root ventilation and $37^{\circ}C$ open / $35^{\circ}C$ close for side vent). In the treatment of SV+RV, although the average daily maximum temperature inside the greenhouse temporarily increased by $38-40^{\circ}C$, thermal stress by high temperature did not occur and the disease incidence (%) of powdery mildew and downy mildew on the oriental melon were 25 - 75% lower than in the conventional SV treatment. In the SV treatment, the disease incidence (%) of powdery mildew and downy mildew were 1.4 - 7.7% and 4.2 - 15.9% for 'Deabakkul', and 20.3 - 22.8% and 2.8 - 11.3%, for 'Ildeungkkul'. The yield for one month was higher in the treatment of SV+RV than those in other treatments, with values of 2,105 kg/10a for 'Deabakkul' and 2,537 kg/10a for 'Ildeungkkul'. The simultaneous treatment with side vent and roof vent resulted in 16.2% higher yield (18.1% higher marketable yield) than that in the SV treatment for 'Deabakkul'.

• Mycobiology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.67-72
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• 2006

Efficacy of resistance induction by the bacterial isolates Pseudomonas putida (TRL2-3), Micrococcus luteus (TRK2-2) and Flexibacteraceae bacterium (MRL412), which were isolated from the rhizosphere of plants growing in Jeju Mountain, were tested in a greenhouse. The disease severity caused by Phytophthora infestans was effectively reduced in the potato plants pre-inoculated with bacterial isolates compared with those of the untreated control plants growing in a greenhouse. In order to estimate the level of protection by the bacterial isolates, Mancozeb WP (Diesen $M^{(R)}$, Kyong nong) and DL-3-amino butyric acid (BABA) were pre-treated, whereas Dimethomorph WP ($Forum^{(R)}$, Kyong nong) and phosphonic acid ($H_{3}PO_{3}$) were post-treated the challenge inoculation with the pathogen. Disease severities of chemical pre-treated as well as post-treated plants were reduced compare to those of the untreated. The disease reduction in the plants pre-treated with Mancozeb WP was the highest, whereas that of post-treated with Dimethomorph WP was the lowest. The yields of plants pre-inoculated with three bacterial isolates were greatly increased than those of control plants. These results suggest that biological control by bacterial isolates might be an alternative strategy against late blight disease in potato plants growing in greenhouse.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.241-246
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• 2009

Korean pine (Pinus koraiensis Sieb. et Zucc.), a five-needle pine, has recently been suffering pine wilt disease caused by non-native pinewood nematode, Bursaphelenchus xylophilus. Three-year-old Korean pine seedlings were inoculated with 10,000 pathogenic nematodes in a greenhouse to investigate disease development, water content and the density of nematodes in stems. Needle dehydration, xylem drying and pith browning started 20 days after inoculation (DAI). There were significant differences between seedlings inoculated with nematodes and control seedlings in the relative water content of stems and leaves at 20 and 30 DAI. At 60 DAI, all remaining seedlings inoculated with nematodes had died, but control seedlings all remained alive. The average number of nematodes recovered from stems of Korean pine dramatically increased from 10 to 20 DAI, and then decreased at the end of the experiment at 60 days. This study suggests that the relative water content of stems and leaves in current-year branches could be used as a useful physiological indicator for early diagnosis of pine wilt disease.

• Journal of Bio-Environment Control
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.46-53
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• 2018

This study was conducted to determine which greenhouse provided good environmental conditions for strawberry production, and performed better at conserving energy. Temperature, RH, VPD, $CO_2$, solar radiation, yield, and fuel consumption were the parameters analyzed. The temperatures of both greenhouses were well controlled in order to provide optimal day and night temperatures for strawberry production. The air inflated double layer greenhouse had higher RH values (more than 90% at night), which led to higher disease occurrence, in comparison to the conventional double layer greenhouse. Furthermore, the air inflated double layer greenhouse had lower VPD values than the conventional double layer greenhouse. Therefore, better RH and VPD were observed in the conventional double layer greenhouse. Higher $CO_2$ concentration was observed in the air inflated double layer greenhouse while the conventional double layer greenhouse ventilated better than the air inflated greenhouse, because of its side ventilators. Moreover, higher solar radiation in the conventional double layer greenhouse resulted in higher yield, in comparison to the air inflated double layer greenhouse. Thus, we can conclude that the conventional double layer greenhouse provided a better environment for crop growth, in comparison to the air inflated double layer greenhouse. Regarding fuel consumption, the air inflated double layer greenhouse had lower fuel consumption than the conventional double layer greenhouse. Therefore, from an energy consumption point of view, we can conclude that the air inflated double layer greenhouse performed better than the conventional double layer greenhouse.