ULTRASTRUCTURAL AND CYTOCHEMICAL INVESTIGATIONS OF PATHOGEN DEVELOPMENT AND HOST REACTIONS IN SUSCEPTIBLE AND PARTIALLY-RESISTANT CARROT ROOTS INFECTED BY PYTHIUM-VIOLAE, THE MAJOR CAUSAL AGENT FOR CAVITY SPOT
L. Guerin et al., ULTRASTRUCTURAL AND CYTOCHEMICAL INVESTIGATIONS OF PATHOGEN DEVELOPMENT AND HOST REACTIONS IN SUSCEPTIBLE AND PARTIALLY-RESISTANT CARROT ROOTS INFECTED BY PYTHIUM-VIOLAE, THE MAJOR CAUSAL AGENT FOR CAVITY SPOT, European journal of plant pathology, 104(7), 1998, pp. 653-665
Two carrot genotypes, cultivar Nanco and line 24, susceptible and part
ially- resistant respectively to cavity spot, were compared ultrastruc
turally and cytochemically 24 h, 48 h and 72 h after root inoculation
with a virulent Pythium violae isolate. The extent of pathogen ingress
and the response of the host differed markedly with the two genotypes
. In cv Nanco, growth of fungal hyphae was predominantly intracellular
and was accompanied by pronounced damage; by 48 h after inoculation,
pericycle and the first cell layers of the phloem parenchyma were inva
ded, resulting in host wall dissolution and cytoplasm aggregation. The
growth of P. violae in Line 24 was limited to the pericycle, even up
to 72 h after inoculation; fungal colonization was accompanied by retr
action of cytoplasm and in the appearance of granular or fibrillar mat
erial in the host cell lumen. Some affected host cells were filled wit
h structureless osmophilic material. In cultivar Nanco, invading funga
l hyphae were unaffected; by contrast in line 24, the cytoplasm of inv
ading hyphae, particularly those inside the cell host, was disorganise
d and structureless. Infection and host response in the two cultivars
were studied with two specific labels: Aplysia gonad lectin (AGL), a p
olygalacturonic acid-binding lectin, and an exoglucanase complexed to
colloidal gold were used to locate pectin and cellulosic beta-(1,4)-gl
ucans respectively in infected tissues. The decrease of cytochemical l
abeling beyong fungal penetration showed clearly hydrolysis of pectin
and cellulose in cell walls of the cv Nanco. By contrast, the cell wal
l of line 24 remained largely intact, although unlabeled amorphous and
electron-dense material was observed inside the wall. Fibrillar or el
ectron dense material commonly observed in infected tissue of Line 24
apparently did not contain pectic or cellulosic substances. Moreover,
material observed in host cells or fungal hyphae was also free of labe
ling. The origin and the chemical composition of these compounds as we
ll as their possible role in the defence mechanisms of carrot against
P violae are discussed.