Plant Pathology

Plant Disease
❖ British Mycological Society defined plant disease as a harmful
deviation from the normal functioning of the physiological
process of a plant.
❖ A plant disease is the complex of symptoms caused by a
pathogen on a plant.
❖ A plant disease is an abnormal plant condition caused by a
pathogen, improper environmental condition or a nutritional
deficiency.
❖ Phytopathology, or plant pathology, is the study of plant
diseases.
Plant diseases are classified in various ways based on
(I) nature of the causal agent (II) symptoms, etc.

I. Classification of plant diseases based on causal

agents
Plant disease may be classified into infectious and non-
infectious, based on the causative agents.

Infectious diseases are caused by pathogenic living

organisms and they are transmitted from one plant to
another.
On the other hand, non-infectious diseases are caused by
nonliving factors or agents (deficiency of nutrients,
extremes of temperature, light, moisture, etc.) and are not
transmitted.
A.Non-infectious (non-parasitic, or physiological) diseases.
These are the diseases that are not associated with any living
pathogen and are not transmitted from a diseased plant to a
healthy plant.
These diseases are caused by disturbances in the plant body due to
lack of some inherent qualities, improper environmental conditions
of soil and air, injurious mechanical influences etc.
Unfavourable temperature, undesirable soil moisture and pH,
presence of toxic gases in the atmosphere, lightning injury, mineral
excesses and deficiencies in the soil, absence or excess of light,
pesticide toxicity, improper agricultural practices, etc. are the major
causes of physiological disorders in plants.
Common examples of physiological diseases are tip rot or necrosis
of mango fruits, black heart of potato, tip burn of paddy, chlorosis
etc.
B. Infectious diseases
These are the diseases caused by pathogenic organisms. These diseases result from
the invasion of a host plant by pathogenic organisms. The common pathogenic
organisms, responsible for plant diseases, are viruses, bacteria, mycoplasmas, algae,
fungi, flowering plant parasites, and nematodes.
•Bacterial diseases: Citrus Canker (Xanthomonas citri)
•Fungal diseases: Quick wilt of pepper (Phytophthora capsici)
•Viral diseases: Tapioca Mosaic Disease (Tapioca Moasaic Virus), Bunchy top of
Banana (Banana virus-I).
•Algal diseses: red rust of black pepper or tea caused by the algae Cephaleuros (C.
virescens).
•Diseases caused by nematode: red ring disease in coconut (caused by the red ring
nematode) and root-knot in cotton caused by the root-knot nematode.
•Diseases caused by Mycoplasma: In plants “yellowing” is a common disease and
Mycoplasma like organisms (MLOs) are identified as the causal organisms. Eg Citrus
greening, Cotton stenosis.
•Parasitic angiosperms: Eg. Lorathus.
II. CLASSIFICATION BASED ON THE SYMPTOMS OF PLANT DISEASES
Symptoms are the visible morphological manifestations of a disease,
exhibited by a diseased plant.
They are the external signs of a disease.
Symptoms result from the abnormal physiological changes, caused by
pathogenic infection.
The sum total of the different symptoms exhibited by a plant is called
syndrome.
Symptoms are mostly disease-specific. So, each disease has its own
characteristic symptoms, and based on symptoms diseases can be easily
identified.
However, there are instances in which a single disease has different kinds
of symptoms, and two different diseases have similar or identical
symptoms.
The symptoms of plant diseases fall under three major groups, namely
necrosis, hypoplasia and hyperplasia.
I. Necrosis
Necrosis is the death of one or more cells, or a small part, even when
the plant is still alive.
It is the commonest and the most destructive effect of plant diseases,
and is a common symptom of fungal diseases.
Usually, it is produced by unspecialized fungal parasites (e.g.,Pythium,
Botrytis, Fusarium), and sometimes by specialized parasites (e.g.,
rusts, smuts, mildews).
Viruses and bacteria may also cause necrosis.
The commonest necrotic symptoms are the following.
(i) Spots - Dark-brown, red, yellow, or grey spots of dead tissue on leaves, stems
and fruits. Tar spots are characteristic type of leaf spots with the appearance of
a drop of tar on a leaf surface. In some cases, the dead tissue shrinks and
detaches from the healthy tissue, forming what is called shot hole.
(ii) Rots - Large-scale and rapid death and decomposition of the cells of the
affected tissue, leaving the affected area brown. Root-rot, leaf-rot, stem-rot,
bud-rot and fruit-rot are the common types of rots. Rots are usually caused by
fungi and bacteria.
(iii) Cankers - Large necrotic lesions in the bark or cortex of woody herbaceous
stems - e.g., citrus canker.
(iv) Damping off- Collapse and death of young seedlings when attacked near
their ground level. The affected portion finally disintegrates.
(v) Wilting - Dehydration, drying, drooping and ultimate death of aerial parts,
probably due to the plugging of xylem vessels by fungi or mucilaginous
substances.
(a) Black spot of rose, with lesions of various (b) Leaf symptoms of black rot of
sizes; splashing rain or water disperses spores grape, showing multiple generations of
to other leaves or to neighboring plants. infections on the leaf caused by spores
splashing from lesions with active
sporulation.
 Tomato rot

Crown and foot rot of squashes

Damping off
Wilt
Citrus canker
Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. citri
 Black knot canker on cherry twig

Ceratocystis canker on trunk of almond tree.

(vi) Streaks or stripes - Narrow, linear lesions of dead tissue on stem or leaf.
(vii) Blights - Sudden and serious damage or death of tissues, leaving brown or
black patcheson leaves, flowers and twigs.
(viii) Die-back - Progressive browning and ultimate death of branches from tip to
base.
(ix) Scabs - Rough, crust-like lesions mostly on fruits and vegetables.
(x) Blisters or pustules - Blister-like pustules on leaves, enclosing the spores of the
pathogen. They break open at maturity, exposing the powdery mass of the spores
of the pathogen.
(xi) Gummosis - Presence of a clear and amber-coloured exudate on the surface
of theinfected part. This exudate later on sets into a solid and water-insoluble
mass.
(xii) Smuts - Sooty or charcoal-like powdery masses, commonly found in plants
infected bysmuts, such as Usti/ago, Tillevia, etc.
(xiii) Rusts - Small. red, yellow, or dark-brown and pustule-like masses of powdery
spores which break through the epidermis and appear on the surface.
Streak
Sheath blight

Leaf blight

Panicle blight
Die back in Citrus
 Blisters

Apple Scab

Pustules
Gummosis of Mango
Differential reaction of leaves of wheat varieties to a race of
wheat rust.
 A mixture of intact healthy wheat
kernels and somewhat darker,
broken wheat kernels filled with
spores of the common bunt
(covered smut) fungus Tilletia sp.

Ear of corn having some of the corn kernels replaced by galls

containing spores of the fungus Ustilago maydis. – Corn smut
II. Hypoplasia
This is the abnormal underdevelopment of plant parts due to diseases or nutrient
deficiencies. Hypoplasia is underdevelopment of a tissue or plant due to decreased
number of cell division. This makes the plant stunted and dwarf. In extreme cases,
an organ or tissue may not develop at all. The commonest hypoplastic symptoms
are the following.
(i) Chlorosis - Abnormal yellowing and mottling of leaves due to a fall in chlorophyll
production.
(ii) Mosaics - Abnormal leaves with irregular yellow patches intermingled with
green areas.
(iii) Stunting - Extreme retardation and abnormal dwarfing of the whole plant.
(iv) Variegation - Irregular and abnormal colour pattern of leaves or flowers due to
the suppression of pigment production.
(v) Vein clearing - Yellowing of leaf tissue near around veins.
(vi) Rosetting - Overcrowding of leaves into a rosette due to abnormal shortening
of internodes. A short, bunchy habit of plant growth.
Chlorosis and leaf spot symptoms of bacterial Intervenal chlorosis (Iron deficiency)
blight (Pseudomonas cannabina) of cauliflower.

Papaya ring spot

Vein clearing
Yellow vein Mosai of Bhendi
Rosetting in Blackberry

Rose rosette disease

III. Hyperplasia
This is the abnormal overdevelopment of plant parts due to
abnormally high rates of cell division or due to abnormal increase in
the number of cells. It often results from the action of parasites. The
commonest hyperplastic symptoms are the following.
(i) Galls and tumours - Large-sized and localised swellings on the
infected parts of a plant,usually produced in response to parasitic
attack.For example Agrobacterium infection.
(ii)Curls - Rolling, twisting, crinkling, pluckering and distortion of
leaves due to abnormal overgrowth of tissues.
(iii) Hairy roots - A compact cluster of abnormally numerous, thin and
hairy fibrous roots.
Chilli Leaf curl

Tomato Leaf curl

A. Symptoms of fungal diseases
1. Mildews: A fungal disease of plants in which the mycelium,
sporophores etc. of the pathogen are seen as a whitish growth on
the host surface.
Mildews are white, grey, brown, or purple patches of varying size on
leaves, herbaceous stems or fruits.
They result from fungal attack.
In downy mildews, the superficial growth is a tangled cottony or
downy layer.
But, in powdery mildews, enormous numbers of spores are formed
due to the superficial growth of the fungus giving a dusty or
powdery appearance.
Minute and black-coloured fruiting bodies may also develop in the
powdery mass.
Powdery
mildew
symptoms on

(A) leaves of
young wheat
plant,

(B) cluster of
grape berries

(C) lilac leaf

(D) azalea plant

Downy mildew of grape. Early symptoms on (A) grape leaf and (B) grape
cluster
2. Rusts: These are diseases with rusty symptoms in the plants.
It is caused by rust fungus.
Rusts appear as relatively small pustules of spores, usually breaking
through the host epidermis,
The pustules may be either dusty or compact, and red, brown,
yellow, or black in colour.

3. Smuts: The term smut means a sooty or charcoal-like

powder.
In plant diseases known as smuts, the affected parts of the
plant show a black or purplish black dusty mass.
These symptoms usually appear on floral organs,
particularly on the ovary.
The pustules are usually much larger than those of the
rusts.
Differential reaction of leaves of wheat varieties to a race of
wheat rust.
 A mixture of intact healthy wheat
kernels and somewhat darker,
broken wheat kernels filled with
spores of the common bunt
(covered smut) fungus Tilletia sp.

Ear of corn having some of the corn kernels

replaced by galls containing spores of the fungus
Ustilago maydis. – Corn smut
4. White blisters: On leaves of cruciferous and other plants, there may be found
numerous white blister like pustules which break open and expose powdery
masses of spores. Such diseases have been commonly known as white rusts.
5. Scab: The term scab refers to a roughened or crust-like lesion or to a freckled
appearance of the diseased organ. In some diseases of this type, the parasite
appears at a certain stage, but in others it is never seen.
6. Sclerotia: Sclerotium is a compact and often hard mass of dormant fungal
mycelium. In somecases, as in ergot of grasses, the sclerotium assumes a
characteristic shape; in others the shape may be more variable. Sclerotia are
most often black. They may be sometimes buff or dark-brown or purplish in
colour.
7. Blotch: This is a superficial growth on fruits, giving the fruits a blotched
appearance. Examples are the sooty blotch and the fly-speck disease of apple
fruits.
8. Fruiting bodies: These are large, fleshy or woody, spore-bearing structures
(sporophores), developed by wood-rotting fungi.
 White blisters / rust on Crucifers

Yellow to brown spots form on the upper leaf surface and white, round to oval
blisters develop on the matching under leaf surface.
The blisters consist of masses of white dust-like spores.
The fungus can cause swellings on roots and stems, and distortions of flowers
and leaves.
A mixture of barley kernels (whitish-yellow) and ergot sclerotia (the
larger black bodies) produced by the ergot fungus Claviceps purpurea on the
heads of grain crops in place of healthy kernels.
Symptoms of leaf blotch diseases usually first appear between the veins of lower
leaves as chlorotic (i.e, yellow), water-soaked flecks that enlarge to become dry, yellow,
then red-brown, blocky to oval lesions, sometimes surrounded by yellow haloes
B. Symptoms of bacterial diseases
1. Exudations: In several bacterial diseases, such as bacterial blight"
of paddy and fire blight of pome fruits, masses of bacteria ooze out
from the affected organ and appear on the surface as drops or
smears.
2. Leaf & shoot Blights -Larger areas of leaves (not circular) and
shoots showing localized discoloration. It is caused by bacteria (and
fungi).
3. Galls and tumors - Large-sized and localized swellings on the
infected parts of a plant, usually produced in response to parasitic
attack. For example Agrobacterium infection.
4. Hairy roots - A compact cluster of abnormally numerous, thin and
hairy fibrous roots.
Some terms

Hyperplasia – An outgrowth resulting from an abnormal

increase in the number of cells.
Hypoplasia - underdevelopment of a tissue or plant due
to decreased number of cell division.
Hypertrophy – An outgrowth resulting from an abnormal
increase in the size of cells
Hypotrophy – underdevelopment of a tissue or plant due
to abnormally reduced cell enlargement.
Biological control - controlling pathogen population with the help of
other living organisms other than man himself. Control of pests by
means of parasites, predators and disease producing organisms.
Biological control is the eradication or suppression of plant pathogens
using their natural enemies. Trichoderma can be used for quick wilt of
pepper.
Biotroph – an organism which lives and multiplies only on another
organism in nature.
Necrotroph: Parasites that first kills the host and then obtain their
nutrients from the dead cells or tissues.
Etiology (Aetiology): The science of the cause of diseases. When
used in a broader sense, it includes the study of causal factors, their
nature and their relations with host. Etiology concerns with the
causal organisms along with the environmental conditions that cause
the disease in plants
Gall – A tumefaction or tumor; hyperplastic symptom of plant
disease characterized by localized swelling or outgrowth of tissue
composed unorganized cells.
Host – an organism which is invaded by a parasite and the latter
obtains its nutrients from which.
Hyperparasite – a parasite that parasites another parasite.
Hypersensitivity – Defensive reaction in which a plant restricts
infection by necrotic lesions around points of entry of the pathogen.
Incubation period – period of time between penetration of a host
by a pathogen and symptom manifestation on the host.
Infection – the entering and establishment of a parasite within a
host.
Inoculation – Transferring or arriving of a pathogen inoculum onto a
host or medium.
Integrated control: An approach that attempts to use all available
methods of control of a disease or of all the diseases and pests of a
crop plant for best control results but with the least cost and the
least damage to the environments.
Invasion – spread of a pathogen within the host.
Lesion – a localized area of diseased tissue.
Quarantine: Control of import and export of plants or their parts
(produce) to check spread of pathogens from diseased to disease
free area.
Primary inoculum: The penetrating pathogen or its part that cause
primary infection.
Phytoalexins: A substance which is produced when host cells come
in contact with the pathogen, and inhibit the development of the
pathogen and prevent further attack by other pathogens in near
future.
According to the Federation of British Plant Pathologists (1973),
a pathogen is an organism or virus capable of causing disease in a
particular host or range of hosts.

Most, but not all pathogens, are also parasites in that they derive
the materials they need for existence from a living plant (the host or
the suscept) as distinct from saprophytes which derive these
materials from dead organic matter.
Pathotype
This is a subdivision of a species distinguished by the common characters of
pathogenicity, particularly in relation to the range of hosts.
Serotype
A serotype is a population of a pathogen (usually a bacterium or virus) in which all
individuals possess a given character of serology in common (Robinson, 1969).
On the basis of serological tests, differences between apparently similar organisms
or viruses may be found and the subdivisions thus formed are called serotypes or
strains. For example, only one serotype was designated amongst 45 isolates of
Xanthomonas oryzae (X campestris) on the basis of agglutination reactions and gel
diffusion tests (Addy and Dhal, 1977).
Physiotype
It is a population of pathogen in which all individuals have a particular character
of physiology (but not pathogenicity) in common (Robinson, 1969).
Pathogenicity
It is the quality or characteristic of a pathogen of being able to cause disease.
Pathogenesis
It is the sequence of progress in disease development from the initial contact
between a pathogen and its host to the completion of the syndrome.
Horsfall and Dimond (1960) liken the relationship between the micro-
organisms and higher plants to a situation in which your mother-in-law lives
with you.
If she contributes to the harmonious running of the household, your
relation is symbiotic;
If you support her and she does not do her share of work she is a
parasite and you are the host;
If she stirs up trouble between you and your wife she is a pathogen.
Her actions, your reaction and her reactions constitute pathogenesis.
Host
An organism that-harbours or supports the activities of a parasite is known as
the host. Whetzel (1929) termed the diseased plant as suscept, but suscept may
actually mean the plant that is susceptible or prone to disease.
Inoculum
Inoculum is the infectious material that can cause disease and it is that portion of
individual pathogens that is brought into contact with the host.

Inoculum Potential

The degree of infectivity.

Garrett (1956) defined inoculum potential as, "the energy of a fungal parasite
available for infection of a host at the surface of the host organ to be affected".
Primary Inoculum
The overwintering or oversummering stage may be in or on the seed of the
host, in perennial wild host, in debris of infected plant of the previous
season, in dormant spores, sclerotia or other organs of the soil, or in the
form of an inhabitant of the soil flora.
Whatever the source, it causes primary infection. It may serve as an infective
agent and thus becomes the primary inoculum, or it may multiply as a saprophyte
(or as a parasite on perennial host) to produce spores which become the primary
inoculum.
The rust fungus oversummers in India in the uredial stage on summer wheat in the
hills, from where the primary inoculum is carried by air currents to the next crop
grown at the foot of the hills and then to the plains.
When the host becomes diseased, the organism commonly produces another crop
of spores or infective bodies which are known as the secondary inoculum and serve
to cause secondary infection, This last cycle may be repeated several times.
The uredial pustules formed in the wheat crop as a result of primary infection
become a source of secondary infection to other plants as the urediospores are
blown down to these leaves and plants.
Penetration
This is the first step in the contact of the inoculum with the host.
Penetration may take place in one of a number of ways which are characteristic of
the organism and are sometimes influenced by the environment.
There is a clear distinction between penetration and infection.
Penetration refers to the initial invasion of the host by an organism.
We may have many cases of penetration without infection,
For example, in the case of apple scab fungus (Venturia inaequalis) conidia, the
infection hyphae penetrate readily whether or not the host variety and the fungal
strain are compatible (Nusbaum and Keitt, 1938), but in the resistant host variety,
the fungus is not able to develop further and cause infection due to the influence of
the vital activities of the cell.
Infection
It implies the establishment of the pathogen inside the host following penetration in
which a parasitic relationship between the two organisms is established.
Incubation Period
There may be a long period between penetration and infection and the appearance
of the disease.
This interval of time between the penetration of the host by a pathogen and the
first appearance of symptoms on the host is known as the incubation period
In the case of black stem rust of wheat, the pathogen Puccinia graminis tritici enters
the host (wheat) a day or so after the urediospores have germinated, but the actual
symptoms of the disease in the form of rust pustules develop only after a week or so
at 20°C .
In the case of Sphacelotheca sorghi (covered smut of Sorghum), the very young seedling
is infected from soil-borne or seed-borne spores, but no visible symptoms appear
until the infected plant produces smutted flowers
In such cases, the incubation period is technically several months, although
increased respiration of the diseased plant may occur much sooner
Disease Development
It refers to a series of events which occur between the time of infection and
complete development of the disease.
Epidemiology
Epidemiology of disease is a study of the factors affecting the outbreak of an
infectious disease.
Symptoms
Disease development is a long drawn out process which involves the production
of secondary inoculum and progression of external or internal evidences of the
disturbance of morphological and physiological processes of the host plant.
These external or internal reactions or alterations as a result of a disease are
referred to as symptoms.
Syndrome
Diseased plants show several valuable symptoms- by which a disease is
recognized. These symptoms are collectively known as syndrome.
Disease Cycle
A series of events involved in disease development, including the stages of
development of the pathogen and the effect of the disease on the host, is called
the disease cycle. When a pathogen is involved, the disease cycle is intimately
associated with the organism. It is distinct from the life cycle of the organism.
Infectious Organism
An infectious organism is one which may be transmitted from a diseased host
plant to a healthy plant and which is capable of inciting the disease in a
favourable environment.
Infectious Disease
An infectious disease is one in which a transmissible causal organism is a part of
the causal complex, or in other words, the disease can spread from a diseased to a
healthy plant.
VARIOUS LEVELS OF PARASITISM
Symbiosis
Two living organisms may live in association with one another and in a sense, each
may be parasitic upon the other.
However, they are not only non-pathogenic to one another, but are also essential to
each other's development or at least each is beneficial to the other's development.
This phenomenon is known as symbiosis. Lichens are classical examples of
symbiosis in which a fungus and an alga live in close association.
The alga, through its photosynthetic activity, converts the light energy of the sun's
rays into the chemical energy of carbohydrates which is useful for its own
development and essential to the life of the fungus.
The latter, through its property of producing hydrolytic enzymes, breaks down
material in the substrate: and thus makes energy available and provides minerals
and organic nutrients essential to itself and the alga.
Another case of symbiosis is that of the Rhizobium species forming root nodules in
leguminous plants.
Obligate Parasites
There are various categories of parasitism.
Parasites which are restricted to living tissues (also known as biotrophs) are called
obligate parasites.
Obligate is also used to denote those parasites which have not been grown in axenic
cultures, that is, free from any other organism.
Facultative Saprophytes
Facultative saprophytes ordinarily have a life cycle similar to that of obligate
parasites, in that they pass most of the cycle in association with the host and do not
subsist as saprophytes.
They may, however, subsist as saprophytes for part of their life cycle, but do not
complete their life cycle away from the host.
Many of the smut fungi are good examples of this.
Facultative Parasites
This term implies that they are ordinarily saprophytic but under certain conditions
they may become parasitic. Many damping off fungi, such as Pythium and Rhizoctonia
are good examples of this.
Saprophytes
Saprophytes are those organisms which have no relation with the living cell and
secure their nutrients from dead organic tissues or from available inorganic materials.

In fact, a number of fungi, once considered to be obligate parasites, have been

cultured away from their hosts on artificial media.
This makes the term obligate inappropriate.
Luttrell (1974) recognizes three broad categories of parasitism which are as
follows:
Biotrophs
These are those organisms which, regardless of the ease with which they can be
cultured in nature, obtain their food from the living tissues on which they complete
their life cycles.
Some typical examples are rusts, smuts and mildews.
Hemibiotrophs
These are organisms which attack living tissues in the same way as biotrophs but
continue to develop and sporulate after the tissue is dead. Typical examples of
these are leaf-spotting fungi.
Perthotrophs
These are organisms which kill host tissues in advance of penetration and then live
saprophytically. Sclerotium rolfsii is a typical fungus included in this category.
Virulence
Aggressiveness and virulence are ambiguous terms.
Many pathologists equate virulence with pathogenicity; nevertheless,
some shade of difference in usage is usually apparent.
Thus, the statement that an organism is pathogenic merely implies
that it can cause a disease.
But a virulent organism is considered to have a high capacity to do so.
Aggressiveness is equally ambiguous-and has been used by Gaumann
(1950) to describe the capacity of a parasite to invade and grow in its
host plant and to reproduce on or in it.
High aggressiveness can be combined with low pathogenicity, as in
the case of some obligate parasites which invade plants efficiently but
cause minimal damage to it, at least in the early stages of attack.
Aggressiveness is also used as a measure of pathogenicity.
Predisposition
It may be defined as the effect of one or more environmental factors which makes
a plant vulnerable to attack by pathogen.
It is a process which antedates penetration and infection.
Susceptibility
It is the inability of a plant to resist the effect of a pathogen or any other
damaging factor.
Susceptibility of a given individual may be increased or decreased by
environmental factors.
It may also vary between individuals, varieties or species because of differences
in the inherited characteristics which affect susceptibility.
Resistance
Resistance can be described as the inherent ability of a plant to prevent or
restrict the establishment and subsequent activities of a potential pathogen.
It may be regarded as the opposite of susceptibility and may also be influenced by
environmental factors.
It is the ability of the plant to withstand, oppose or overcome the attack of a
pathogen completely or in some degree.
Vertical resistance (VR) and Horizontal resistance (HR) - Vander Plank (1968).
Horizontal (uniform) resistance : Resistance is evenly spread against all races of a
pathogen
Vertical (differential) resistance : when it is completely effective against some
races of a pathogen but not against others.
It may be polygenic (determined by many genes), oligogenic (several genes) or
monogenic (one gene).
The genes involved may be major or minor depending on their effectiveness in
conferring resistance.
Hypersensitivity
This results in a violent local reaction to attack by a pathogen and the prompt
death of tissue around the points of entry prevents further spread of infection.
Hypersensitivity thus confers high resistance and is sometimes used in the sense
of immunity.
Symptomless Carriers
Symptomless carriers are those plants in which the agent inciting disease is
present but shows no symptoms. This is an extreme case of tolerance in some
plants.
Active and Passive Resistance
Active (or dynamic) resistance is "due to reactions incited by the attack", while
passive (or static) resistance is "due to qualities innate in the host prior to the
attack". These terms describe resistance mechanisms and do not necessarily
connote any epidemiological significance.
Pathodeme
Pathodeme is that population of a host in which all individuals have a particular
character of resistance in common (Robinson, 1969).
Biotype
A biotype is a population of individuals which are genetically
identical (literally any species subdivision which is based on criteria
other than morphological).
Immunity
This implies exemption from infection by a pathogen and in this
sense is an absolute quality.
Aetiology
Aetiology is the science of the cause of disease. When used in a
broader sense, it includes the study of causal factors, their nature and
their relations with the host.
Fungitoxic, Fungicidal, Fungistatic
Fungitoxic substances are harmful to fungi and include fungicides. The word
fungicide has originated from two latin words, viz. fungus and caedo.
The word caedo means 'to kill‘
Thus, literally speaking, a fungicide is any agency which has the ability to kill a
fungus.
According to this meaning, physical agencies like heat and ultraviolet light should
also be called fungicides. However, this is not so. In common usage, the meaning of
the word fungicide is restricted to chemicals.
Hence, fungicide means a chemical capable of killing fungi.
Some chemicals do not kill fungi but inhibit fungus growth temporarily.
Such a chemical is called fungistat and the phenomenon of temporarily inhibiting
growth is called fungistasis
 CLASSIFICATION OF PLANT DISEASES
Diseases may be classified in various ways on the basis of:
1. Host plants affected, such as cereals, millets, fruits, trees, vegetables, etc.
2. Parts of the plant affected, such as roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits, etc.
3. Symptoms produced on the host plants, such as wilts, blights, soft rots,
anthracnoses, rusts, smuts, mildews, damping off, etc.
4. The mode of spread and severity of infection, such as epiphytotic, endemic,
sporadic and Pandemic.
5. Causal organism/ factor. (Parasitic, Non parasitic, Mycoplasmal, Viral etc.)
CLASSIFICATION OF PLANT DISEASES ON THE BASIS OF SPREAD
AND SEVERITY OF INFECTION
Endemic Diseases
A disease is classified as endemic when it is constantly present in a moderate or
severe form and is confined to a particular country or district, for example, the
wart disease of potato caused by Synchytrium endobioticum is endemic in Darjeeling.
In plant pathology, this term is generally applied to simple interest diseases which
are either indigenous or of ancient introduction.
Epidemic or Epiphytotic Diseases
An epidemic or epiphytotic disease usually occurs widely, but periodically, in a
destructive form.
The pathogen may by present, as in endemic diseases, but the environmental
factors responsible for the development of the disease occur only periodically, for
example, cereal rusts, powdery mildews, etc.
Sporadic Diseases
Sporadic diseases, in reality, belong to the epidemic group. The term is applied to
those diseases which occur at very irregular intervals and locations and in
relatively fewer instances.
Angular leaf spot and blotch disease of cucumber are sporadic diseases
Pandemic Diseases
These occur all over the world and result in mass mortality, for example, late
blight of potato.
 Importance of Plant Pathology
The role of plant pathology is important for alleviating losses to our
food, fodder, fibre .and other plant products.

In Ireland there was a great famine and about a million people

died and almost the same number of people migrated to
other continents. Ireland population depended on potato as their
major source of food. In 1845 the potato blight (Phytophthora
infestans) devastated millions of acres in Europe, the USA and
Canada.
Sudden and complete was the catastrophe that in only a few days,
fields which had promised abundant harvests were transformed into
blackened waste of vegetation overlying and putrifying masses of
rotten tubers.

In the early 1870s another fungus disease coffee rust (Hemileia

vastatrix), wiped out the coffee plantations of Sri Lanka. Coffee growing was
therefore, abandoned, at least for many decades. They started
1930 the banana crop in Central and South America was threatened with extinction by
Sigatoka disease (Mycosphaerella musicola) and the industry could be saved only by 1940 when
Bordeaux mixture was used on a massive scale
In France, between 1878 and 1882, the wine industry was threatened due to introduction of
downy mildew (Plasmopara viticola) from the USA.
In India, the Bengal famine was perhaps largely due to the Helminthosporium disease of rice
(Leaf blight/ brown leaf spot), caused Heiminthosporium oryzae. About two million people died
of starvation
In 1946-47, the wheat rust epidemic was responsible for food shortage as well as seeds in
Madhya Pradesh.
The bacterial blight of rice, thought to be confined to Japan, was reported in 1951 in
Bombay and in a short time became very serious and widely distributed, attacking the
commonly cultivated varieties.
The disease broke out in an epidemic form in the Shahbad district of Bihar in 1963. With
the introduction of Taichung Native-l , the disease appeared in a severe form in 1966
throughout the country, wherever the crop was grown. Thus, with the introduction of one
susceptible variety, a disease which was unknown in all but two states earlier, became
pandemic within two years. At present bacterial blight is a major hurdle in stepping up rice
yields