Sensitivity of Mycosphaerella fijiensis from banana to trifloxystrobin

An ascospore germination method was developed and validated to assess the sensitivity of bulk samples of Mycosphaerella fijiensis to trifloxystrobin. Using this method, the sensitivity of 142 ascospore samples from banana plantations not treated with strobilurins was analyzed to establish a baseline of pathogen sensitivity. A bulk method was utilized for monitoring purposes because it avoids potential complications due to the isolation and propagation of single-spore isolates and enables the testing of larger samples. Following intensive use of strobilurins (6 to 11 applications per year) over 4 years, under conditions of high disease pressure and the absence of sanitary measures at a development site in Costa Rica, bulk samples with 50% effective concentration (EC50) resistance factors (RFs) in excess of 500 compared with the mean baseline sensitivity were detected. Single-ascospore isolates derived from spores germinating at the discriminatory dose of 3 mug/ml were also resistant, suggesting that the frequency of resistant individuals in bulk samples could be estimated from the relative numbers of ascospores growing at this dose. The resistance of selected isolates was confirmed in planta. In vitro tests with four resistant and two sensitive single-ascospore isolates collected from different locations and times indicated possible cross-resistance of trifloxystrobin to azoxystrobin, famoxadone, and fenamidone, but not to propiconazole.