Fruitlet core rot of pineapple (Ananas comosus) caused by Fusarium ananatum in Japan

Abstract

Fruitlet core rot of pineapple (Ananas comosus) has been found in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan since a few decades ago. A fungus frequently isolated from the diseased fruits was identified as Fusarium ananatum based on morphological and cultural characteristics and molecular analyses of EF-1α,β-tubulin and histone H3 DNA sequences. The isolates reproduced the symptoms on pineapple fruits after inoculation using toothpicks and were reisolated from the inoculated symptomatic fruits. This is the first report of fruitlet core rot of pineapple caused by F. ananatum in Japan, and we propose the Japanese name “shoka-fuhai-byo” of pineapple.