An emerging fungal disease is spreading across the globe and affecting the blueberry industry

Michael Bradshaw; Kelly Ivors; Janet C Broome; Ignazio Carbone; Uwe Braun; Shirley Yang; Emma Meng; Brooke Warres; William O Cline; Swarnalatha Moparthi; Alejandro K Llanos; Walter Apaza; Miao Liu; Julie Carey; Mehdi El Ghazouani; Rita Carvalho; Marianne Elliott; David Boufford; Tiaan Coetzee; Johan de Wet; James K Mitchell; Luis Quijada; JamJan Meeboon; Susumu Takamatsu; Uma Crouch; Scott LaGreca; Donald H Pfister

doi:10.1111/nph.20351

An emerging fungal disease is spreading across the globe and affecting the blueberry industry

New Phytol. 2025 Jan 8. doi: 10.1111/nph.20351. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Michael Bradshaw^{1

2}, Kelly Ivors³, Janet C Broome³, Ignazio Carbone¹, Uwe Braun⁴, Shirley Yang⁵, Emma Meng⁵, Brooke Warres³, William O Cline¹, Swarnalatha Moparthi¹, Alejandro K Llanos⁶, Walter Apaza⁶, Miao Liu⁷, Julie Carey⁷, Mehdi El Ghazouani³, Rita Carvalho³, Marianne Elliott⁸, David Boufford², Tiaan Coetzee³, Johan de Wet³, James K Mitchell², Luis Quijada^{2

9}, JamJan Meeboon¹⁰, Susumu Takamatsu¹¹, Uma Crouch¹, Scott LaGreca¹, Donald H Pfister²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, Center for Integrated Fungal Research, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27606, USA.
² Harvard University Herbaria and Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA.
³ Global Plant Health, Driscoll's Inc., Watsonville, CA, 95076, USA.
⁴ Department for Geobotany and Botanical Garden, Institute of Biology, Martin Luther University, Herbarium, Halle (Saale), 06108, Germany.
⁵ Department of Clean Stock, Driscoll's of China R&D, Yunshui Rd, DaBanQiao St., Central Yunnan New Industry Area, Kunming, 650000, Yunnan Province, China.
⁶ Department of Plant Pathology, Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina, Ave La Molina s/n, La Molina, Lima, 15024, Peru.
⁷ Biodiversity and Bioresources, Ottawa Research and Development Center, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 960 Carling Ave, Ottawa, ON, K1A 0C6, Canada.
⁸ Washington State University, Puyallup, WA, 98371, USA.
⁹ Departamento de Botánica, Ecología y Fisiología Vegetal, Ave Astrofísico Francisco Sánchez, s/n. Facultad de Farmacia, Apartado 456, Código Postal 38200, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Canary Islands, Spain.
¹⁰ Institute of Vegetable and Floriculture Science, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization (NARO), 360 Ano, Tsu, Mie, 514-2392, Japan.
¹¹ Department of Bioresources, Graduate School, Mie University, 1577 Kurima-Machiya, Tsu, 514-8507, Japan.

PMID: 39775676
DOI: 10.1111/nph.20351

Abstract

Powdery mildew is an economically important disease caused by c. 1000 different fungal species. Erysiphe vaccinii is an emerging powdery mildew species that is impacting the blueberry industry. Once confined to North America, E. vaccinii is now spreading rapidly across major blueberry-growing regions, including China, Morocco, Mexico, and the USA, threatening millions in losses. This study documents its recent global spread by analyzing both herbarium specimens, some over 150-yr-old, and fresh samples collected world-wide. Our findings were integrated into a 'living phylogeny' via T-BAS to simplify pathogen identification and enable rapid responses to new outbreaks. We identified 50 haplotypes, two primary introductions world-wide, and revealed a shift from a generalist to a specialist pathogen. This research provides insights into the complexities of host specialization and highlights the need to address this emerging global threat to blueberry production.

Keywords: blueberries; co‐evolution; emerging pathogens; fungi; powdery mildew.

Abstract

Grants and funding