A panel of qPCR assays to detect and quantify soybean soil-borne pathogens.

Fusarium oxysporum,F. graminearum,F. acuminatum,F.

Ecology and diversity of culturable fungal species associated with soybean seedling diseases in the Midwestern United States.

Aims: To isolate and characterize fungi associated with diseased soybean seedlings in Midwestern soybean production fields and to determine the influence of environmental and edaphic factors on their incidence.

Methods And Results: Seedlings were collected from fields with seedling disease history in 2012 and 2013 for fungal isolation. Environmental and edaphic data associated with each field was collected.

Microbial Communities Associated With Long-Term Tillage and Fertility Treatments in a Corn-Soybean Cropping System.

Tillage and fertilization are common practices used to enhance soil fertility and increase yield. Changes in soil edaphic properties associated with different tillage and fertility regimes have been widely examined, yet, the microbially mediated pathways and ecological niches involved in enhancing soil fertility are poorly understood. The effects of long-term conventional tillage and no-till in parallel with three fertility treatments (No fertilization, N-only, and NPK) on soil microbial communities were investigated in a long-term field study that was established in the 1970's.

Targeting Aflatoxin Biosynthetic Genes.

Chemical detoxification and physical destruction of aflatoxins in foods and feed commodities are mostly unattainable in a way that preserves the edibility of the food. Therefore, preventing mycotoxins in general and aflatoxins in particular from entering the food chain is a better approach. This requires early detection of the aflatoxin-causing organisms.

Multilaboratory Comparison of Quantitative PCR Assays for Detection and Quantification of Fusarium virguliforme from Soybean Roots and Soil.

The ability to accurately detect and quantify Fusarium virguliforme, the cause of sudden death syndrome (SDS) in soybean, in samples such as plant root tissue and soil is extremely valuable for accurate disease diagnoses and to address research questions. Numerous quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assays have been developed for this pathogen but their sensitivity and specificity for F. virguliforme have not been compared.