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Root rot disease poses a significant threat to canola ( Brassica napus ), underscoring the need for a comprehensive understanding of its causal agents for more effective disease mitigation. The composition and diversity of fungal pathogens associated with root rot of canola in Alberta, Canada, were evaluated from plant tissue samples collected in 2021 and 2022. The study revealed Fusarium spp. as the predominant pathogens found in almost all surveyed fields. Fusarium avenaceum , F. redolens , and F. solani were among the most frequently recovered species. Greenhouse trials confirmed their pathogenicity, with F. avenaceum and F. sporotrichioides found to be particularly aggressive. Additionally, F. sporotrichioides and F. commune were identified for the first time as canola root rot pathogens. Inoculation with isolates of most species resulted in significant reductions in seedling emergence, plant height, and shoot and root dry weights. Analysis of translation elongation factor 1-α (TEF-1α) and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) sequences confirmed the identity of the Fusarium spp., while concatenating the ITS and TEF-1α sequences enabled improved species differentiation. Geographic and year effects did not influence fungal diversity or aggressiveness, as determined by principal component analysis. This study emphasized the high diversity and impact of Fusarium spp. in causing canola root rot.

In this study, clubroot resistance in the resynthesized European winter Brassica napus cv. 'Tosca' was introgressed into a Canadian spring canola line '11SR0099', which was then crossed with the clubroot susceptible spring line '12DH0001' to produce F 1 seeds. The F 1 plants were used to develop a doubled haploid (DH) mapping population. The parents and the DH lines were screened against 'old' pathotypes 2F, 3H, 5I, 6M and 8N of the clubroot pathogen, Plasmodiophora brassicae, as well as against the 'new' pathotypes 5X, 5L, 2B, 3A, 3D, 5G, 8E, 5C, 8J, 5K, 3O and 8P. Genotyping was conducted using a Brassica 15K SNP array. The clubroot screening showed that 'Tosca, '11SR0099' and the resistant DH lines were resistant to three (2F, 3H and 5I) of the five 'old' pathotypes and four (2B, 3O, 8E and 8P) of the 12 'new' pathotypes, while being moderately resistant to the 'old' pathotype 8N and the 'new' pathotypes 3D and 5G. 'Tosca' was susceptible to isolates representing pathotype 3A (the most common among the 'new' pathotypes) as well as pathotypes 6M, 5X, 5L, 5K and 8J. Linkage analysis and QTL mapping identified a ca. 0.88-0.95 Mb genomic region on the A03 chromosome of 'Tosca' as conferring resistance to pathotypes 2F, 3H, 5I, 2B, 3D, 5G, 8E, 3O and 8P. The identified QTL genomic region housed the CRk, Crr3 and CRd gene(s). However, the susceptibility of 'Tosca' to most of the common virulent pathotypes makes it unattractive as a sole CR donor in the breeding of commercial canola varieties in western Canada., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

Rhizosphere microbes influence one another, forming extremely complex webs of interactions that may determine plant success. Identifying the key factors that structure the fungal microbiome of the plant rhizosphere is a necessary step in optimizing plant production. In a long-term field experiment conducted at three locations in the Canadian prairies, we tested the following hypotheses: (1) diversification of cropping systems influences the fungal microbiome of the canola (Brassica napus) rhizosphere; (2) the canola rhizosphere has a core fungal microbiome, i.e., a set of fungi always associated with canola; and (3) some taxa within the rhizosphere microbiome of canola are highly interrelated and fit the description of hub taxa. Our results show that crop diversification has a significant effect on the structure of the rhizosphere fungal community but not on fungal diversity. We also discovered and described a canola core microbiome made up of one zero-radius operational taxonomic unit (ZOTU), cf. Olpidium brassicae, and an eco-microbiome found only in 2013 consisting of 47 ZOTUs. Using network analysis, we identified four hub taxa in 2013: ZOTU14 (Acremonium sp.), ZOTU28 (Sordariomycetes sp.), ZOTU45 (Mortierella sp.) and ZOTU179 (cf. Ganoderma applanatum), and one hub taxon, ZOTU17 (cf. Mortierella gamsii) in 2016. None of these most interacting taxa belonged to the core microbiome or eco-microbiome for each year of sampling. This temporal variability puts into question the idea of a plant core fungal microbiome and its stability. Our results provide a basis for the development of ecological engineering strategies for the improvement of canola production systems in Canada.