A study was undertaken to examine the pathogenic diversity of Pyricularia grisea isolates retrieved from 14 upland rice (Oryza sativa) cultivars in experimental plots during a period of five years. Inoculations were performed on 32 genotypes with 85 monoconidial isolates under controlled greenhouse conditions. Based on the reaction pattern of eight international differentials, eleven pathotypes of P. grisea were identified. The predominant international races or pathotypes were IB-9 (56.4%), IB-1 (16.4%) and IB-41 (11.8%). A set of eight commercial upland rice cultivars ('Carajás', 'Confiança', 'Maravilha', 'Primavera', 'Progresso', 'Caiapó', 'IAC-47', 'IAC-201') was utilized as additional differentials for describing the virulence pattern of P. grisea. Twenty-six Brazilian pathotypes were identified on the basis of disease reaction on these differentials, in contrast to the 11 international pathotypes. The most predominant Brazilian pathotypes, BB-21 and BB-41 were represented by 28.2% and 17.6% of the isolates tested, respectively. Isolates virulent and avirulent to cultivar 'Primavera' were encountered within the pathotype IB-1. Utilizing Brazilian cultivars as differentials, the 14 isolates of the pathotype IB-1could be further classified into eight local pathotypes, BB-41, BB-13, BB-21, BB-9, BB-29, BB-61, BD-9 and BG-1. Virulence to improved rice cultivars 'Canastra', 'Confiança', 'Carisma', 'Maravilha', 'Primavera' and 'Bonança' was frequent in pathogen population. Some of the Brazilian pathotypes that showed differential reaction on commercial rice cultivars could be utilized for incorporating resistance genes in susceptible cultivars improved for grain quality, by conventional breeding methods.
Oryza sativa; Magnaporthe grisea; physiologic races; differential varieties; resistance; virulence
