First report of brown rot caused by Monilia yunnanensis on kiwiberry (Actinidia arguta) in China

Abstract

Kiwiberry (Actinidia arguta) is one of the most nutritious fruits in China, with edible and traditional medicinal values. Brown rot, caused by different species of Monilia, is a common and severe postharvest disease of fruit. In September and October 2023, kiwiberry brown rot was observed in several fruit supermarkets in Harbin, Heilongjiang Province. Fungal isolates were obtained from the edges of lesions on fruit with typical symptoms and identified as M. yunnanensis on the basis of morphological characteristics (colonies and conidia) and multi-locus phylogenetic analyses (ITS, TUB, and lcc2). Pathogenicity experiments showed that M. yunnanensis was able to infect kiwiberry fruit and cause symptoms of brown rot, demonstrating that M. yunnanensis was the causal agent of kiwiberry brown rot. In the present study, we reported for the first time that M. yunnanensis was the causative agent of kiwiberry brown rot, thus laying the foundation for the subsequent development of reasonable and effective postharvest fruit control measures.