Hidehiko Kikuno

Panama disease of banana occurred in Miyakojima Island, Okinawa, Japan

In 2016, in Miyakojima, Okinawa, Japan, banana plants (Musa × paradisiaca) ‘Shima-banana’ developed yellowing and wilt associated with vascular discoloration of the pseudostems. Fusarium oxysporum, identified based on morphological characters, was frequently isolated from the vascular tissue of the infected plant and reproduced the original symptoms on ‘Shima-banana’ after drench inoculation with a spore suspension. Thereby, we determined that the disease is Panama disease caused by F. oxysporum. This is the first official report of Panama disease (Panama-byo in Japanese) of banana in Japan.