This substantially updated edition now in full colour provides key techniques used when working with fungal and fungal-like plant pathogens. As a practical manual it also deals with disease recognition, detection and identification of fungi, plus methods to characterise and curate fungi and handle them under quarantine and quality assurance systems. Fungal Plant Pathogens: Applied Techniques, 2nd edition provides a valuable guide to investigating fungal plant diseases and interpreting laboratory findings for postgraduate and advanced undergraduate students, extension plant pathologists, consultants and advisers in agriculture, forestry and horticulture, and the food supply chain.

This book provides an overview of our current knowledge of some plant-pathogen interactions in economically important crops, emphasizing the importance of pathogenic fungi on fruits, cereals, postharvest crops and the establishment of plant diseases and drawing together fundamental new information on their management strategies based on conventional and eco-friendly methods, with an emphasis on the use of microorganisms and various biotechnological aspects of agriculture, which could lead to sustainability in modern agriculture. The book examines the role of microbes in growth promotion, as bioprotectors and bioremediators, and presents practical strategies for using microbes in sustainable agriculture. In addition, the use of botanicals vis-a-vis chemical pesticides is also reviewed. Contributions on new research fields such as mycorrhizas and endophytes are included. The book also examines in different chapters host-pathogen interactions in the light of the new tools and techniques of molecular biology and genetics.

Fungal diseases have contributed to death and disability in humans, triggered global wildlife extinctions and population declines, devastated agricultural crops, and altered forest ecosystem dynamics. Despite the extensive influence of fungi on health and economic well-being, the threats posed by emerging fungal pathogens to life on Earth are often underappreciated and poorly understood. On December 14 and 15, 2010, the IOM's Forum on Microbial Threats hosted a public workshop to explore the scientific and policy dimensions associated with the causes and consequences of emerging fungal diseases.

The variety of the mycological world is far greater than most people imagine. Tens of thousands of fungal species have been described and many more are known only from the abundance of their genes in soil and water. Fungi are hugely important as agents of wood decay in forests, and, as parasites, they have caused the deaths of millions of people by ravaging crops and reshaping natural ecosystems. Fungi perform a variety of essential functions in ecosystems, and are important to both agriculture and biotechnology. Their importance is now becoming better appreciated among scientists, though there is much still to be understood concerning their taxonomy and evolution. This Very Short Introduction highlights the variety and extraordinary natures of fungi, revealing the remarkable facts of fungal biology and the global significance of these enchanting organisms. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.

Every year we see a remarkable increase in scientific knowledge. We are learning more each day about the world around us, about the numerous biological organisms of the biosphere, about the physical and chemical processes that shaped and continue to change our planet. The cataloging, retrieval, dissemination, and use of this new information along with the continued development of new computer technology provide some of the most challenging problems in science as we enter the Information Age. With the explosion of knowledge in science, it is especially important that students in introductory courses learn not only the basic material of a subject, but also about the newest developments in that subject. With this goal in mind, we have prepared a second edition of Introduction to Plant Diseases: Identification and Management. We prepared this edition with the same general purpose that we had for the first edition - to provide practical, up-to-date information that helps in the successful management of diseases on food, fiber, and landscape plants for students who do not have a strong background in the biological sciences. We included new information on (1) the precise identification of diseases and the pathogens that cause them, (2) the development of epidemics of plant diseases, (3) the application of biotechnology in plant pathology, (4) the use of alternative methods of crop production and disease management that help protect the environment, and (5) diseases that have become more important since the first edition was published.

Uniquely modern textbook providing a broad, all-round understanding of fungal biology and the biological systems to which fungi contribute.

Paloma Melgarejo is an author on one patent issued in Spain and one patent issued internationally, and has co-obtained plant variety rights for the following strawberry varieties: Aguedilla, Amiga, Carisma, Fontanilla, Fuentepina, Marina, Medina, and Santaclara. Maria Del Mar Jimenez-Gasco is an author on two patents issued in Spain, relating to the identification of Fusarium oxysporum.