Changes in tillering and leaf chemistry in Brachypodium phoenicoides infected by the fungus Epichloë typhina

The fungus Epichloe typhina (Clavicípilaceae) is the causal agent of choke disease in several grass species. This disease is characterized by the presence of cylindrical fungal stromata which wrap the immature inflorescences and inhibit the normal development of reproductive tillers. A three-year field experiment conducted with infected and uninfected plants of the grass Brachypodium phoenicoides showed that in a vegetative growth stage there were no significant differences in biomass production, but the concentration of Ca, Mg and Mn was greater and that of Na was lower in infected than in non-infected plants. Infected plants produced up to twice as rnany reproductive tillers than healthy plants, but their reproductive tissue biomass was smaller than that of healthy plants, since tiller development was arrested by choking stromata