ELISA and immunocytochemical detection of Fusarium solani-produced naphthazarin toxins in citrus trees in Florida

Naphthazarin toxins of Fusarium solani were detected by competitive ELISA analysis in xylem fluid of roots rotted by F. solani and symptomless scaffold roots and branches of healthy-appearing and diseased citrus trees in ridge and flatwoods Florida groves. Studies concentrated on blight, a wilt disease with an undefined cause and etiology, to determine if F. solanis is a causal factor of the disease. Healthy-appearing roots of trees with blight symptoms in six groves contained up to 11.4 times more toxin than roots of healthy trees in the same groves (...)