Efficacy of Biological Control Agents and Resistance Inducer for Control of Mal Secco Disease
Mal secco, caused by <i>Plenodomus tracheiphilus,</i> is an economically important fungal vascular disease in citrus-growing countries of the Mediterranean basin. Preventing fungal infections usually requires a high number of copper treatments but European legislation imposes the minimiz...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2023-04-01
|
| Series: | Plants |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/9/1735 |
| _version_ | 1797601879274815488 |
|---|---|
| author | Giuseppa Rosaria Leonardi Giancarlo Polizzi Alessandro Vitale Dalia Aiello |
| author_facet | Giuseppa Rosaria Leonardi Giancarlo Polizzi Alessandro Vitale Dalia Aiello |
| author_sort | Giuseppa Rosaria Leonardi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Mal secco, caused by <i>Plenodomus tracheiphilus,</i> is an economically important fungal vascular disease in citrus-growing countries of the Mediterranean basin. Preventing fungal infections usually requires a high number of copper treatments but European legislation imposes the minimization of their accumulation in soil. In our study, biological control agents (BCAs) and a plant resistance inducer (PRI), tested in four different experiments on citrus seedlings under controlled conditions, have resulted in promising strategies to control mal secco disease. Foliar (Experiment I) and soil (Experiment II) applications of two formulations of <i>Bacillus amyloliquefaciens</i> strain D747 (Amylo-X<sup>®</sup> LC and Amylo-X<sup>®</sup> WG) provided similar performances in reducing the disease amount (incidence and symptoms severity) over time compared to the untreated control, whereas copper hydroxide (Kocide Opti<sup>®</sup>) used as standard was the most effective treatment over time. In the third experiment, <i>Pythium oligandrum</i> strain M1 (Polyversum<sup>®</sup>) and <i>Trichoderma asperellum</i> strain ICC012 <i>+ Trichoderma gamsii</i> strain ICC080 (Remedier<sup>®</sup>) were able to reduce disease incidence and symptoms severity compared to the untreated control. Remedier<sup>®</sup> provided the best performances in reducing the disease amount, whereas the Polyversum<sup>®</sup> application was the least effective treatment over time. The effectiveness of the <i>Trichoderma</i> spp. formulation in reducing <i>P. tracheiphilus</i> infections did not significantly differ from the standard copper compound (Kocide Opti<sup>®</sup>). Comprehensively, in the last experiment (IV), acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM) alone and in mixture with metalaxyl-M proved as effective as <i>B. amyloliquefaciens</i> strain FZB24, with no dose–response relationships observed. These findings provide important insight for the integrated management of mal secco disease. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T04:09:48Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-19a80e311d90429ca53f101fd3a78229 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2223-7747 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T04:09:48Z |
| publishDate | 2023-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Plants |
| spelling | doaj.art-19a80e311d90429ca53f101fd3a782292023-11-17T23:31:01ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472023-04-01129173510.3390/plants12091735Efficacy of Biological Control Agents and Resistance Inducer for Control of Mal Secco DiseaseGiuseppa Rosaria Leonardi0Giancarlo Polizzi1Alessandro Vitale2Dalia Aiello3Dipartimento di Agricoltura, Alimentazione e Ambiente (Di3A), University of Catania, Via S. Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, ItalyDipartimento di Agricoltura, Alimentazione e Ambiente (Di3A), University of Catania, Via S. Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, ItalyDipartimento di Agricoltura, Alimentazione e Ambiente (Di3A), University of Catania, Via S. Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, ItalyDipartimento di Agricoltura, Alimentazione e Ambiente (Di3A), University of Catania, Via S. Sofia 100, 95123 Catania, ItalyMal secco, caused by <i>Plenodomus tracheiphilus,</i> is an economically important fungal vascular disease in citrus-growing countries of the Mediterranean basin. Preventing fungal infections usually requires a high number of copper treatments but European legislation imposes the minimization of their accumulation in soil. In our study, biological control agents (BCAs) and a plant resistance inducer (PRI), tested in four different experiments on citrus seedlings under controlled conditions, have resulted in promising strategies to control mal secco disease. Foliar (Experiment I) and soil (Experiment II) applications of two formulations of <i>Bacillus amyloliquefaciens</i> strain D747 (Amylo-X<sup>®</sup> LC and Amylo-X<sup>®</sup> WG) provided similar performances in reducing the disease amount (incidence and symptoms severity) over time compared to the untreated control, whereas copper hydroxide (Kocide Opti<sup>®</sup>) used as standard was the most effective treatment over time. In the third experiment, <i>Pythium oligandrum</i> strain M1 (Polyversum<sup>®</sup>) and <i>Trichoderma asperellum</i> strain ICC012 <i>+ Trichoderma gamsii</i> strain ICC080 (Remedier<sup>®</sup>) were able to reduce disease incidence and symptoms severity compared to the untreated control. Remedier<sup>®</sup> provided the best performances in reducing the disease amount, whereas the Polyversum<sup>®</sup> application was the least effective treatment over time. The effectiveness of the <i>Trichoderma</i> spp. formulation in reducing <i>P. tracheiphilus</i> infections did not significantly differ from the standard copper compound (Kocide Opti<sup>®</sup>). Comprehensively, in the last experiment (IV), acibenzolar-S-methyl (ASM) alone and in mixture with metalaxyl-M proved as effective as <i>B. amyloliquefaciens</i> strain FZB24, with no dose–response relationships observed. These findings provide important insight for the integrated management of mal secco disease.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/9/1735disease managementacibenzolar-S-methyl<i>Bacillus amyloliquefaciens</i><i>Trichoderma</i> spp.<i>Pythium oligandrum</i> |
| spellingShingle | Giuseppa Rosaria Leonardi Giancarlo Polizzi Alessandro Vitale Dalia Aiello Efficacy of Biological Control Agents and Resistance Inducer for Control of Mal Secco Disease Plants disease management acibenzolar-S-methyl <i>Bacillus amyloliquefaciens</i> <i>Trichoderma</i> spp. <i>Pythium oligandrum</i> |
| title | Efficacy of Biological Control Agents and Resistance Inducer for Control of Mal Secco Disease |
| title_full | Efficacy of Biological Control Agents and Resistance Inducer for Control of Mal Secco Disease |
| title_fullStr | Efficacy of Biological Control Agents and Resistance Inducer for Control of Mal Secco Disease |
| title_full_unstemmed | Efficacy of Biological Control Agents and Resistance Inducer for Control of Mal Secco Disease |
| title_short | Efficacy of Biological Control Agents and Resistance Inducer for Control of Mal Secco Disease |
| title_sort | efficacy of biological control agents and resistance inducer for control of mal secco disease |
| topic | disease management acibenzolar-S-methyl <i>Bacillus amyloliquefaciens</i> <i>Trichoderma</i> spp. <i>Pythium oligandrum</i> |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/12/9/1735 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT giusepparosarialeonardi efficacyofbiologicalcontrolagentsandresistanceinducerforcontrolofmalseccodisease AT giancarlopolizzi efficacyofbiologicalcontrolagentsandresistanceinducerforcontrolofmalseccodisease AT alessandrovitale efficacyofbiologicalcontrolagentsandresistanceinducerforcontrolofmalseccodisease AT daliaaiello efficacyofbiologicalcontrolagentsandresistanceinducerforcontrolofmalseccodisease |