EUTYPA DIEBACK OF GRAPEVINE - ISOLATION OF A MOLECULE SYNTHESIZED BY EUTYPA-LATA AND TOXIC FOR GRAPEVINE

Eutypa dieback, caused by the ascomycet fungus Eutypa lata, is current ly the most serious disease of the grapevine. This disease Mow affects a great number of vineyards throughout the world, its economic impact is very important and there is no remedy available for the destructio n of the parasitic fungus. In this article, we describe the dieback sy mptoms, the management practices, the economic impact and the present knowledge on the interactions between E. lata and grapevine. We also p resent findings concerning the role of a toxic compound, hydroxy-4(met hyl-3 butene-3 ynyl-1)-3 benzaldehyde, name eutypine, synthesized by t he parasitic fungus and which was shown to be involved in the expressi on of the disease symptoms. The recent progress made in understanding eutypine's mechanism of action has opened new prospects regarding deve lopment of efficient tools for stopping this disease.