Molecular Characterization of Pseudomonas syringae pv. Coriandricola and Biochemical Changes Attributable to the Pathological Response on Its Hosts Carrot, Parsley, and Parsnip

Abstract

Bacterial leaf spot caused by the plant pathogenic bacterium Pseudomonas syringae pv. coriandricola (Psc) was observed on carrot, parsnip, and parsley grown on a vegetable farm in the Vojvodina Province of Serbia. Nonfluorescent bacterial colonies were isolated from diseased leaves and characterized using different molecular techniques. Repetitive element PCR fingerprinting with five oligonucleotide primers (BOX, ERIC, GTG5, REP, and SERE) and the randomly amplified polymorphic DNA-PCR with the M13 primer revealed identical fingerprint patterns for all tested strains. Multilocus sequence analysis of four housekeeping genes (gapA, gltA, gyrB, and rpoD) showed a high degree (99.8 to 100%) of homology with sequences of Psc strains deposited in the Plant-Associated Microbes Database and NCBI database. The tested strains caused bacterial leaf spot symptoms on all three host plants. Host-strain specificity was not found in cross-pathogenicity tests, but the plant response (peroxidase induction and chlorophyll bleaching) was more pronounced in carrot and parsley than in parsnip.