Population genetics and gene sequence analysis of Athelia rolfsii collected from Northern Iran

Athelia rolfsii is a globally dispersed pathogenic fungus, causing white root rot disease in many crops and horticultural plants. In this study, 90 isolates were collected from three provinces of Guilan, Mazandaran and Golestan in northern Iran. Eighteen isolates were selected for sequence analyses based on their host, sampling sites and Mycelial Compatibility Groups (MCG). Translation elongation factor 1-α(tef1-α), β-tubulin (tub2) genes and rDNA large subunit (LSU) were partially amplified and sequenced in order to conduct phylogenetic analyses. Approximately, all Iranian isolates clustered together in both tef1-α and LSU phylogenetic trees. However, after deletion of ambiguous sites, no variations were observed in tub2 sequences. ISSR and SCoT were also used to investigate the genetic structure of the population. Results of the molecular variance analysis (AMOVA) showed that 70 and 30% of the observed variance corresponded to the difference between and within the populations, respectively. According to these findings, we suggest that mating between populations would be less likely and thus, gene flow is restricted.