Botrytis Fungi

Botrytis Fungi Latest News

Recently, researchers from Sichuan University and the University of British Columbia have found that botrytis fungi (Botrytis cinerea) cannot be cloned.

About Botrytis Fungi

• It is a widespread necrotrophic fungal pathogen.
• Botrytis cinerea needs to obtain nutrients before it can penetrate a plant.
• Dead or damaged plant tissue, such as old flower petals, can provide nutrients that the fungus needs.
• Owing to this feeding source, the infection gains strength and spreads to healthy plant tissues. A brownish rot develops in newly infected tissues, which is how Botrytis cinerea deteriorates plants.
• These fungi usually attack blossoms and fruit, but they can also cause rot and blight on buds, stems, leaves, roots, bulbs, and tubers.
• The fungus typically targets fragile, wounded, aging, or dead plant parts.
• It infects grapes, penetrates the skin, causes the berries to lose water by evaporation and shrivel up, and thus concentrates the sugars and flavours in them.
• It was also found recently that this fungi exhibits an unusual idiosyncrasy.
• In these fungi, no single nucleus contains a complete set of chromosomes. Instead, the chromosome set is distributed across two or more nuclei, and any one nucleus contains only a subset.
• It requires warm temperatures, high humidity, and prolonged wetness which facilitate easy fungus inoculation.
• Additionally, it can release organic acids, such as oxalic acid, which acidify the surrounding environment.

Source: TH

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