EVALUATION OF THE RESISTANCE OF BRAZILIAN COFFEE GENOTYPES TO ANTHRACNOSIS OF GREEN FRUITS AND MOLECULAR IDENTIFICATION OF Colletotrichum kahawae

• Grant number: 25/05670-1
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research
• Start date: December 01, 2025
• End date: February 28, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Plant Health
• Principal Investigator: Alex Mendonça de Carvalho
• Grantee: Alex Mendonça de Carvalho
• Host Investigator: Leonor de Castro Esteves Guerra Guimaraes
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias. Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus do Vale do Ribeira. Registro , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal

Abstract

Colletotrichum kahawae is the causal agent of coffee green berry anthracnose, known as Coffee Berry Disease (CBD), one of the main threats to Coffea arabica production in Africa. The disease is highly aggressive and has the potential to cause significant losses if introduced into other coffee-producing regions. This study aims to evaluate the resistance of Brazilian coffee genotypes to C. kahawae through hypocotyl testing and to perform the molecular identification of this pathogen using the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technique.For resistance evaluation, hypocotyls from different genotypes of C. arabica and C. canephora of the Brazil will be inoculated with three isolates of C. kahawae and maintained under controlled conditions. Disease severity will be assessed over 30 days, following a previously established symptom scale. Additionally, C. kahawae identification by PCR analysis will be performed using specific primers for genes associated with pathogenicity and species differentiation within the Colletotrichum genus.The results of this study will contribute to coffee breeding programs by enabling the selection of resistant genotypes and the implementation of effective CBD management strategies. Furthermore, the molecular identification of C. kahawae reinforces the importance of phytosanitary surveillance and the rapid detection of the pathogen, preventing its introduction into new coffee-growing areas (AU)