Characterization of Colletotrichum isolates causing anthracnose of pepper in Korea

A total of 33 isolates of Colletotrichum species obtained from pepper, apple, and strawberry in 2001 and 2002 were identified based on mycological characteristics, responses to fungicides carbendazim and the mixture of carbendazim and diethofencarb, and nucleotide sequence analysis of internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. Most of the Colletotrichum isolates from pepper could be identified as C. acutatum. The pepper isolates produced grey white mycelia that gradually changed to dark gray. The conidia were variable in size, and almost cylindrical in shape with at least one rounded end. They could grow on PDA amended with carbendazim or with the mixture of carbendazim and diethofencarb at 10 mu g/ml, to which the isolates from apple and strawberry were very sensitive. A part of the ITS regions from the Colletotrichum isolates was amplified with the specific primers designed for C. acutatum (Ca1-1) or C. gloeosporioides (Cg1-3). A primer pair of Ca1-1 and a universal primer (ITS4) amplified a 496-bp DNA fragment from all of the pepper isolates examined and one apple isolate. Taken together, it is conclusive that the Colletotrichum isolates causing the typical lesion of anthracnose on pepper fruits are C. acutatum.