First record in Upper Egypt of vascular wilt on pomegranate caused by Fusarium oxysporum, its molecular identification and artificial pathogenicity

A severe vascular pomegranate wilt (Punica granatum L.) has recently been discovered and reported for the first time in Upper Egypt. Diseased samples were obtained from an infected farm in El-Badari city, Assiut Governorate, Egypt, and the pathogen was isolated on potato dextrose agar at 25 °C. Phenotypic features and DNA sequencing of the pathogen's internal transcribed spacer region showed that the fungus was Fusarium oxysporum. The pathogenicity study conducted with 2-year-old plants resulted in 80% infection. F. oxysporum re-isolated from all the inoculated pomegranate trees exhibited the same morphological characters as those observed among the isolates.