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Pathogen

Ustilago tritici

Overview

Scientific name

Ustilago tritici

Genus

Ustilago

EPPO code

USTINT

Common name

Loose smut of wheat

Synonyms

Ustilago nuda f. sp. tritici

Description

From ISTA's Common Laboratory Seed Health Testing Methods for Detecting Fungi:

After isolating the embryos from the seed, soaking, clearing and staining is required (staining is not an option). It is difficult to see the blue-stained mycelium in the embryo, so you must rotate/flip the embryos to closely observe the scutellum. In some infected embryos, only a few hyphae are observed, while in others the whole scutellum is covered by sparse to heavy mycelium.