Investigating phenotypic traits as potential drivers of the emergence of EU_37_A2, an invasive new lineage of Phytophthora infestans in Western Europe

Since the mid-2010s, Phytophthora infestans clones that have been dominant in Western Europe from the beginning of the 21st century, for example, EU_13_A2, EU_6_A1 and EU_1_A1, are being replaced by several other emerging clones, including EU_37_A2. The objective of this study was to determine whether the main drivers for the success of EU_37_A2 in Western Europe are associated with decreased fungicide sensitivity, increased virulence and/or aggressiveness. Axenic P. infestans cultures were sampled in the 2016 and 2017 growing seasons from potato crops in France and the United Kingdom. Amongst these, four genotypes were identified: EU_37_A2, EU_13_A2, EU_1_A1 and EU_6_A1. Although a wide range of fluazinam sensitivity was found amongst individual isolates, clonal lines EU_13_A2 and EU_37_A2 showed decreased sensitivity to fluazinam. EU_37_A2 overcame the R5 differential cultivar more often than isolates of EU_1_A1 or EU_6_A1. However, this does not explain the competitive advantage of EU_37_A2 over the virulent EU_13_A2. The fittest genotype, as measured by aggressiveness under controlled conditions, was EU_6_A1, followed by EU_37_A2, EU_13_A2 and then EU_1_A1. EU_37_A2 isolates also showed a shorter latent period than either EU_6_A1 or EU_13_A2, which could favour its long-term persistence. Overall, the data suggest that the emergence of EU_37_A2 in Western Europe was driven by its resistance to a then-major fungicide and shorter generation time. This conclusion is further supported by the fact that EU_37_A2 emergence was slowed by the progressive reduction in the use of fluazinam as a single active ingredient in the years following its initial detection.