Characterization of Alternaria isolates and reaction of potato genotypes to early blight

ABSTRACT: Early blight is one of the most important fungal diseases of potato. The objective of this study was to evaluate the in vitro reaction of potato genotypes to the severity of early blight and compare the species Alternaria solani and Alternaria grandis , etiologic agents of disease, through the evaluation of physiological characteristics. Twenty-two genotypes of the Potato Breeding Program at UFLA, two cultivars, Aracy and Bintje, patterns of resistance and susceptibility, respectively were evaluated. For inoculation, three isolates of A. grandis and two isolates of A. solani were used. Plantlets obtained in vitro were inoculated with a 5mm diameter mycelial disk of isolates Alternaria spp. of. These were incubated in severity and classified according to the rating scale. Isolates of Alternaria spp. were evaluated for mycelial growth index (MGI) and for formation of mycelial compatibility groups (MCG). The methodology for evaluating the in vitro reaction of genotypes to severity of early blight was efficient for both isolates. The isolates of A. solani and A. grandis were similar in their aggressiveness. The isolates of A. grandis MGI's had higher, and therefore mycelium grew faster when compared to those isolated from A. solani . The occurrence of mycelial compatibility among isolates of A. solani and A. grandis indicated the possible occurrence of parasexual cycle