Original scientific paper

Changes of relative chlorophyll content in sweet corn leaves of different ages infected by corn smut

Dóra Frommer orcid.org/ORCID ; Department of Agricultural Botany of Crop Physiology and Biotechnology, Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Debrecen Hungary
László Radócz orcid.org/ORCID ; Institue of Plant Protection, University of Debrecen, Hungary
Szilvia Veres orcid.org/ORCID ; Department of Agricultural Botany of Crop Physiology and Biotechnology, Institute of Plant Sciences, University of Debrecen Hungary

Abstract

The smut fungus (Ustilago maydis) is a ubiquitous pathogen of corn. One of the symptoms of infected sweet corn by corn common smut is chlorosis on the leaves, so it is especially important to examine how the infection influence the leave chlorophyll content of different hybrids. Five sweet corn hybrids were investigated in the randomized small block field experiments. Hybrids were inoculated by injecting sporidial suspension in the stem, so to induce a high incidence of common smut of corn caused by Ustilago maydis. Two weeks after the inoculation the relative chlorophyll content was measured on seven leaves of different ages per plant by SPAD-502 chlorophyll meter. Because of the infection the relative chlorophyll content of younger leaves was decreased in comparison to the leaves of untreated control plants. The disease systematically spread within the plant causing chlorosis mainly on younger leaves.

Keywords

biotic stress; maize; infection; Ustilago maydis

Hrčak ID:

221763

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/221763

Publication date:

27.6.2019.

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