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Journal of Tea Science ›› 2026, Vol. 46 ›› Issue (1): 89-100.

• Research Paper • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Isolation and Identification of the Pathogen Causing Anthracnose on Yunnan Large-Leaf Tea Plants and Screening of Antagonistic Bacteria

MA Siyu1, LONG Lixue2, LI Zilong1, ZHAO Xianwang1, HE Pengfei3, HE Pengbo3, CHEN Linbo2, QU Hao2, LONG Yaqin2,*, TANG Ping1,3,*   

  1. 1. College of Plant Protection, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming 650201, China;
    2. Institute of Tea, Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Menghai 666201, China;
    3. Key Laboratory of Plant Pathology of Yunnan Province, Kunming 650201, China
  • Received:2025-07-22 Revised:2025-09-26 Online:2026-02-15 Published:2026-02-06

Abstract: Tea anthracnose is a major disease that affects large-leaf tea plants. Severe infections can significantly reduce yield and compromise quality. Leaves showing symptoms of anthracnose were collected from tea plantations in Shahe Township, Lincang City, Yunnan Province. The pathogen was isolated and purified using conventional tissue separation methods. It was identified as the causal agent by fulfilling Koch's postulates, and further confirmed through morphological characterization and multi-gene phylogenetic analysis. The results show that the isolated strain MTTJ-Ⅴ could infect tea plants and cause identical anthracnose symptoms. Based on morphological characteristics and a multi-locus phylogenetic analysis of the ITS, TUB2, ACT and GAPDH gene sequences, the pathogen was identified as Colletotrichum karstii. This is the first report of C. karstii as a pathogen of tea anthracnose on Yunnan large-leaf tea plants. A total of 161 endophytic bacterial strains were isolated from the stems and leaves of 11 tea cultivars. Among these, 59 strains exhibited significant antagonistic activity against C. karstii. Strain CGJ-02 showed the highest inhibition rate (73.73%±6.25%). Based on morphological, physiological, biochemical and molecular biological characteristics, strain CGJ-02 was identified as Bacillus velezensis. Strain CGJ-02 exhibited a broad antifungal spectrum, showing antagonistic effects against 11 pathogenic fungi, including Colletotrichum camelliae and Pestalotiopsis camelliae, in addition to C. karstii. In conclusion, the screened strain B. velezensis CGJ-02 demonstrated significant biocontrol activity against the tea anthracnose pathogen MTTJ-Ⅴ. This strain represents a high-quality microbial resource for the biological control of tea anthracnose.

Key words: tea plant (Camellia sinensis), anthracnose, pathogen identification, antagonistic bacteria

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