DNA-Based Quantification of f. sp. in Environmental Soils to Describe Spatial Variation in Inoculum Density.

Fusarium wilt of cotton, caused by the soilborne fungal pathogen f. sp. (FOV), occurs in regions of the United States where cotton ( spp.) is grown. Race 4 of this pathogen (FOV4) is especially aggressive, and does not require the co-occurrence of the root knot nematode () to infect cotton. Its sudden appearance in far-west Texas in 2016 after many years of being restricted to California is of great concern, as is the threat of its continued spread through the cotton-producing regions of the United States. The aim of this research was to analyze the spatial variability of FOV4 inoculum density in the location where FOV4 is locally emerging, using quantitative and droplet digital PCR methods. Soil samples collected from a field with known FOV4 incidence in Fabens, Texas, were analyzed. Appreciable variation in inoculum density was found to occur at spatial scales smaller than the size of plots involved in cultivar trial research, and was spatially autocorrelated (Moran's I, = 17.73, 0.0001). These findings indicate that, for cultivar trials, accounting for the spatial distribution of inoculum, either by directly quantifying it or through the use of densely distributed calibration checks, is important to the interpretation of results.