Identification of a genomic locus of Verticillium dahliae linked to pathogenicity on sweet pepper

Abstract Although the host range of vascular wilt pathogen Verticillium dahliae can vary among strains, the host-determining mechanisms involved remain unclear. We aimed to identify the genomic region involved in the pathogenicity on sweet pepper using parasexual recombination between pathogenic and nonpathogenic strains, HR26 and GR12. The recombinants were analyzed by codominant DNA markers capable of distinguishing the genomic sequence of each parental strain. This assay identified DNA markers on a genetic locus on the short arm of chromosome 3 of the V. dahliae reference strain JR2 that was linked to pathogenicity of parental and recombinant strains on sweet pepper.