First detection of sugarcane red stripe caused by Acidovorax avenae subsp. avenae in Yuanjiang, Yunnan, China

In 2015, symptoms of red stripe were first viewed on leaves of sugarcane plants growing in Yuanjiang, Yunnan Province. Symptomatic leaf samples were collected from infected plants and isolations were made on NA medium. Pure culture isolates from resulting single colony were identified based on cultural and morphological characteristics as Acidovorax avenae subsp. avenae. Morphological identification was confirmed by sequence analysis of 16S rDNA. Pathogenicity tests confirmed Yunnan isolates of Acidovorax avenae subsp. avenae as the causal agent of red stripe on sugarcane. This is the first report of this disease in Yuanjiang, Yunnan, China. Field surveys showed that the sugarcane cultivar ‘Yunzhe03-194’ was highly susceptible, and disease incidence varied from 8 to 80%. Nine other sugarcane cultivars were found to be symptomless in the field. Further research is required to confirm the resistance levels of the sugarcane varieties.