Histopathological study of Macrophomina phaseolina causing charcoal rot of Sorghum

Charcoal rot of sorghum stem blight by M. Phaseolina (Tassi) Goid, is favoured by warm dry growing conditions and is often associated with drought stress although charcoal rot disease has been found under humid tropic conditions M. Phaseolina can infect a braod array of major crops including common bean, maize, soya bean, cotton, seasame. The common name of the disease caused by M. Phaseolina derived from the symptoms present in adult plants where stem tissues show the growth of numerous microsclerotia and pycnidia. The severity of the disease is directly related to the population of viable sclerotia in the soil. So the study of Histopathology in Rajasthan area were carried out on healthy and diseased sorghum roots and stem pieces in order to find out the precise position of pathogen, its mode of penetration into host tissue, and damage caused as a result of its invasion in plants. Histopathological changes taking place within the tissues and vascular region of root and stem were also recorded. Sorghum bicolor (L) Moench is a monocot plant belonging to the Poaceae (Graminae) family. The anatomical characters of the root and stem are typical of Monocot plant.