Epicoccum spp. Causing Maize Leaf Spot in Heilongjiang Province, China.

Maize leaf spot occurs worldwide and affects maize production. Maize can be infected by several pathogens causing leaf spot, such as , , species, species, etc. In the current study, 30 isolates recovered from symptomatic maize leaves were identified based on morphological characteristics, pathogenicity, and multilocus sequence analyses of nuLSU, ITS, , and . These maize isolates were grouped into five species, including , , , , and . Pathogenicity tests showed that all five species could produce small ellipse- and spindle-shaped spots on maize leaves. The lesion center was grayish yellow to dark gray and surrounded by a chlorotic area. Furthermore, the isolates exhibited high pathogenicity to 20 main maize varieties of Heilongjiang Province but showed different sensitivities to the commonly used fungicides carbendazim and tebuconazole. In addition, these isolates showed different production capacity of pectinase, cellulase, protease, amylase, laccase, and gelatinase, but all showed high lipase activity. This is the first report globally of , , and as causal agents of maize leaf spot. was first reported as a plant pathogen.