Induced change in DNA methylation of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. niveum due to successive transfer

Changes in pathogenicity of old and successively-cultured isolates of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. niveum have been observed and the concept that such cultures will become attenuated is generally accepted. However, the genetic basis for this phenomenon has not been studied. In an effort to identify a DNA marker closely linked to variations, DNA methylation was investigated both before and after the successive transfers of F. o. f. sp. niveum isolates on artificial media. A sector of mycelium in F. o. f. sp. niveum race 2 isolate (TX-XID) which showed variation in pigmentation and colonial morphology occurred after 18 successive weekly transfers on potato dextrose agar (PDA). The sector characteristics were stable and did not change after more successive transfers. It was shown that DNA methylation preexists in ribosomal RNA gene (rDNA) of F. o. f. sp. niveum and that additional changes in DNA methylation occurred during successive culturing.