A PCR-RFLP based diagnostic technique to rapidly identify Seiridium species causing cypress canker

Abstract

Seiridium cardinale, S. cupressi and S. unicorne represent three distinct species of fungi that cause cankers on Cupressus species and the disease collectively known as cypress canker. These fungi cannot be distinguished reliably from each other using morphological characters or ribosomal DNA sequence data. Here we describe a RFLP assay based on digesting β-tubulin amplicons with a single endonuclease, HaeIII, which easily can be used to distinguish among these three species. This RFLP assay provides an inexpensive and simple means of identifying Seiridium species, which include some of the most serious threats to trees in Cupressaceae.

• β-tubulin
• cypress canker
• diagnostics
• HaeIII

This research was financed by the Norwegian Forest Research Institute and the Norwegian Research Council under project numbers 152266/730 and 130163/130.