Canadian Forest Service Publications
Molecular analysis of the population structure of Chondrostereum purpureum. 1997. Ramsfield, T.D.; Becker, E.M.; Shamoun, S.F.; Punja, Z.K.; Hintz, W.E. Canadian Journal of Plant Pathology 19(1): 115.
Year: 1997
Issued by: Pacific Forestry Centre
Catalog ID: 4769
Language: English
Availability: Not available through the CFS (click for more information).
Abstract
Chondrostereum purpureum is a potential biological control candidate for competing hardwood vegetation in forest regeneration sites and utility rights-of-way. The population structure of C. purpureum is being assessed to determine the amount of genetic variation within the population and the possible risks involved with movement of individual isolates after deployment in the field. Restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) of the ribosomal DNA have been characterized in a sample population of C. purpureum collected world wide. Three unique RFLP patterns were observed: the first was found to be worldwide in distribution, the second was only present in North America, and the third was found only in Europe and New Zealand. Gene flow was observed in the North American population by the near equal distribution of nuclear type patterns in the center of the continent where the distinct eastern and western populations merge. Polymorphisms in the mitochondrial DNA are currently being assessed to further clarify the population structure of this fungus and to devise appropriate biocontrol strategies.