Verticillium

Verticillium is a genus of fungi in the division Ascomycota. Within the genus, diverse groups are formed comprising saprotrophs and parasites of higher plants, insects, nematodes, mollusk eggs and other fungi thus it can be seen that the genus is a wide ranging group of taxa characterised by simple but ill-defined characters. The genus may be broadly divided into three ecologically based groups 1) mycopathogens 2) entomopathogens and 3) plant pathogens and related saprotrophs. However, recently the genus has undergone some revision into which most entomopathogenic and mycopathogenic isolates fall into a new group called Lecanicillium. Plant pathogenic isolates still retain the original genus name Verticillium.The better known species of Verticillium are, V. dahliae and V. albo-atrum that cause a wilt disease called Verticillium wilt in more than 300 eudicot plant species.

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