Behnaz Tavakolian

Ms. Behnaz Tavakolian

Shiraz University, Shīrāz, Fārs, Iran

Research Focus & Metrics

Academic Career Length

5Years (2022-Present)

(Calculated once Scilit publication data is synced: current year − year of first publication + 1)

Representative Publications

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30 June 2022 in Journal of Fungi
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Journal Article
Open access
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ZBzeinab Bolboli
zeinab Bolboli
BTBehnaz Tavakolian
Behnaz Tavakolian
Reza Mostowfizadeh-GhalmfarsaReza Mostowfizadeh-Ghalmfarsa
Reza Mostowfizadeh-Ghalmfarsa
MJMoslem Jafari
Moslem Jafari
Santa Olga CacciolaSanta Olga Cacciola
Santa Olga Cacciola
Stem cankers and twig dieback were the most serious disease of fig (Ficus carica) and loquat (Eriobotrya japonica) noticed in a survey of fruit tree orchards in the Fars Province, Iran. Isolates of Bionectriaceae were consistently recovered from symptomatic fig and loquat trees. Phylogenetic analyses of multiple nuclear loci, internal transcribed spacer regions (ITS) of rDNA, RNA polymerase II subunit 2 (rpb2), and translation elongation factor 1-α (tef1), combined with morphological observations, revealed that isolates could be referred to a still unknown taxon, which was formally described as Stilbocrea banihashemiana sp. nov. Phylogenetically, isolates from fig and loquat trees clustered in a well-supported monophyletic group within the Stilbocrea clade of Bionectriaceae, closely related to S. walteri. Stilbocrea banihashemiana sp. nov. was characterized by the lack of stilbella-like asexual structure in both natural substrates and pure cultures and produced two morphologically distinct types of conidia, globose and cylindrical, formed on short and long simple phialides. In pathogenicity tests, S. banihashemiana sp. nov. induced stem cankers in both fig and loquat, wood discoloration in fig and twig dieback in loquat. Pathogenicity tests also showed that the potential host range of this novel pathogen includes other economically relevant horticultural trees.