Journal of Plant Pathology (2002) 84, p. 198 (Vinale et al.)

F. Vinale, S.L. Woo, P. Ambrosino, S. Lanzuise, R. Ciliento, M. Ruocco, A. Ritieni, A. Zoina, F. Scala and M. Lorito (2002)
Sepedonium chrysospermum as biocontrol agent
Journal of Plant Pathology 84 (3), 198-198
IX Meeting, Italian Society for Plant Pathology
Abstract: Sepedonium chrysospermum strains isolated from wild basidiomycetes, but having no pathogenic activity on cultivated mushroom, have been studied in the present work for their antimicrobial activity. In vivo bioassays showed that one strain (704) has a strong biocontrol effect against Rhizoctonia solani and other pathogens. In order to study the mechanism of antagonism, we found evidence indicating that a concurrent production of antibiotics and hydrolytic enzymes, which has been shown to be important in mycoparasitism, is involved in this biocontrol process. We have purified and partially characterised a few chitinases and glucanases acting synergistically with a metabolite able to strongly inhibit spore germination and hyphal growth of Botrytis cinerea. The metabolite was extracted from culture filtrates of S. chrysospermum, purified and chemically characterised. It was found to be 2,4-dihydroxy-3,6-dimethylbenzaldehyde and to have a potent inhibitory effect on test fungi (active concentration started from 0.01 ppm), with germ tube elongation being more affected than spore germination. A low level of phytotoxicity, tested by infiltration in bean leaves of the purified antibiotic, was observed at a concentration higher than 50 ppm. We are working on the chemical synthesis of this antifungal metabolite and the cloning of the enzyme-encoding genes.
Database assignments for author(s): Sheridan L. Woo, Francesco Vinale, Felice Scala

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
biocontrol - natural enemies
Research topic(s) for beneficials or antagonists:
molecular biology - genes

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Rhizoctonia solani
Hypomyces chrysospermus/Sepedonium chrysospermum (antagonist)	Rhizoctonia solani