Increased carbon dioxide concentration in the air reduces the severity of Ceratocystis wilt in Eucalyptus clonal plantlets

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Controle de Sphenophorus levis e Conotrachelus humeropictus pelo uso combinado de nematoides e fungos entomopatogênicos

Pós-graduação em Agronomia (Proteção de Plantas) - FCA

Suscetibilidade de Helicoverpa armigera (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) a entomopatógenos

Pós-graduação em Agronomia (Entomologia Agrícola) - FCAV

Paracoccidioides lutzii sp nov.: biological and clinical implications

Paracoccidioides lutzii, formerly known as 'Pb01-like' strains in the P. brasiliensis complex, is proposed as a new species based on phylogenetic and comparative genomics data, recombination analysis, and morphological characteristics. Conidia of P. lutzii are elongated, different from those of P. brasiliensis. P. lutzii occurs in the central and northern regions of Brazil. Studies comparing P. brasiliensis and P. lutzii may have significant clinical consequences for the diagnosis and treatment of paracoccidioidomycosis.

Cinética de crescimento do fungo termófilo Myceliophthora thermophila M. 7.7 em cultivo no estado sólido

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Escovopsis trichodermoides sp nov., isolated from a nest of the lower attine ant Mycocepurus goeldii

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

cDNA representational difference analysis used in the identification of genes expressed by Trichophyton rubrum during contact with keratin

Dermatophytes are adapted to infect skin, hair and nails by their ability to utilize keratin as a nutrient source. Trichophyton rubrum is an anthropophilic fungus, causing up to 90% of chronic cases of dermatophytosis. The understanding of the complex interactions between the fungus and its host should include the identification of genes expressed during infection. To identify the genes involved in the infection process, representational difference analysis (RDA) was applied to two cDNA populations from T. rubrum, one transcribed from the RNA of fungus cultured in the presence of keratin and the other from RNA generated during fungal growth in minimal medium. The analysis identified differentially expressed transcripts. Genes related to signal transduction, membrane protein, oxidative stress response, and some putative virulence factors were up-regulated during the contact of the fungus with keratin. The expression patterns of these genes were also verified by real-time PCR, in conidia of T. rubrum infecting primarily cultured human keratinocytes in vitro, revealing their potential role in the infective process. A better understanding of this interaction will contribute significantly to our knowledge of the process of dermatophyte infection.

Efeitos de produtos alternativos no controle de doenças na videira

Pós-graduação em Agronomia - FEIS

Virulência de micro-organismos à Plutella xylostella (L.) (Lepidoptera: Plutellidae) e compatibilidade com inseticidas

Pós-graduação em Agronomia (Entomologia Agrícola) - FCAV

Gibberellic acid, ozone and 1-methylcyclopropene on the gray mold control in avant garde rose

Gray mold caused by Botrytis cinerea is considered the major disease of greenhouse grown flowers. The goal of this study was to evaluate the effects of gibberellic acid (GA3), ozone, and 1-MCP, applied on postharvest, on the gray mold control in 'Avant Garde' rose. Rose flowers were artificially inoculated with B. cinerea (104 conidia ml-1) and non-inoculated. After treatments, roses were stored under room conditions (20±2°C/80±5% RH) and checked for gray mold incidence and severity. Spraying of GA3 at 25, 50, and 75 mg L-1 on non-inoculated roses reduced the area under the disease progress curve (AUDPC) of gray mold incidence in 41, 40 and 54%, respectively. Continuous application of ozone at 2.7 ppm reduced 14-folds B. cinerea sporulation. On the other hand, 1-MCP did not control gray mould in rose. These results showed that GA3 sprays and ozone contribute to postharvest control of gray mold in cut rose and can be utilized on integrated disease management.

Control of red-gum lerp psyllid with formulated mycoinsecticides under semi-field conditions

This study evaluated the potential use of commercial mycoinsecticide formulations against red-gum lerp psyllid Glycaspis brimblecombei Moore in semi-field conditions. Eucalypt seedlings infested with psyllid nymphs were sprayed with different formulations and two concentrations of each product. Conidial deposits were evaluated after spraying for control efficiency. The conidial deposit was affected by the pathogen species and by formulation types. Higher conidial deposits were associated with mycoinsecticide formulation concentrates of lower granulometry and oil dispersion. However, some products with low deposits of conidia were highly efficient against psyllid nymphs. The results showed that the use of entomopathogenic fungi is a promising alternative method for controlling the red-gum lerp psyllid.

Effects of UV-B radiation on the antagonistic ability of Clonostachys rosea to Botrytis cinerea on strawberry leaf disc

Human activities are altering the concentrations of ozone in the troposphere and hence in the incidence of ultraviolet-B (UV-B) on Earth’s surface. Although representing only five percent of UV-B radiation striking the Earth's surface, this radiation has the potential to cause effects on biologically active molecules. Sensitivity to UV-B radiation is one of the limitations of biological control of plant pathogens in the field. The objectives of this work were to evaluate the effects of UV-B on several isolates of Clonostachys rosea, and the ability of an isolate of C. rosea, previously selected for its tolerant to UV-B radiation, to control Botrytis cinerea on strawberry leaves in controlled conditions (strawberry leaf discs). The germination of C. rosea conidia was inversely proportional to the irradiance. The most tolerant strain (LQC62) had relative germination of about 60% after irradiation of 4.2kJ/m2, and this strain was selected to be used in the subsequent studies. The data showed that even with exposure to UV-B radiation, C. rosea LQC62 controlled the pathogen. Conidial concentrations of strain LQC62 above 105 conidia/ml showed higher tolerance to UV-B radiation and increased ability to control more than 75% of the B. cinerea even with exposure to radiation. According to our results, in addition to showing less growth under UV-B, conidia of C. rosea had lower antagonistic ability. Further studies are needed to observe the tolerance of B. cinerea conidia to UV-B radiation and thereby prove that an environment with increased UV-B radiation may be favoring the pathogen due to a lower ability of C. rosea to control the pathogen in conditions of increased UV-B.

Strains of Coniothyrium minitans reduce the emission of apothecia of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum

Sclerotia of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Ss) can survive for long time in soil and are the main inoculum source of the white mold disease. An alternative for reducing this inoculum is the use of parasites, such as Coniothyrium minitans (Cm). We evaluated the potential of Cm isolates for the biological control of Ss in beans. The effect of the temperature on the growth of 15 isolated of Cm was evaluated in vitro. The hyperparasitism ability of Cm was evaluated in soil infested with sclerotia and conditioned in pots. The infested soil was treated with conidia suspension of the antagonists, fluazinan or sterile distilled water. After seven days at 20°C, the sclerotia were removed from soil and placed inside Petri dishes over bean leaves previously disinfested. The germination and parasitism of sclerotia were evaluated after 7 to 10 days. To evaluate the apothecia emission, soil infested with sclerotia of Ss and treated as described was maintained at 18°C and the number of emerged apothecia was counted up to 84 days after inoculation. The emergence of bean plants in soil infested with sclerotia and mycelium of the pathogen and treated as described was evaluated in greenhouse. The ideal temperature for growth of Cm isolates varied from 18 to 19°C and at 30-35°C they were complete inhibited. The isolates of Cm promoted less than 10% of reduction in viability of the sclerotia, but they significantly reduced the emission of apothecia. Two isolates increased the emergence of plants in relation to the inoculated check, but was significantly lower than the non-inoculated check. Field tests will be conduct to confirm the potential of the selected isolates to reduce the inoculum source of the pathogen.

Produção semissólida de metarhizium anisopliae e beauveria bassiana em diferentes substratos e efeito da radiação ultravioleta e da temperatura sobre propágulos desses entomopatógenos

The present study was aimed to evaluate different (semi-solid) media for the production of Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana propagules, and to evaluate the tolerance of these propagules to ultraviolet radiation and temperature. The experiments were performed at the Biological Control Laboratory of the Instituto Biológico at Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil. For both fungi, 6 repetitions were performed for each of the 17 treatments: corn starch, full rice, parboiled rice, type-1 rice, type-2 rice, oat flakes, canjiquinha [grits], wheat flour, raw cassava flour, yellow corn flour, special wheat flour, corn flour, corn in grains, cassava starch, soy in grains, crushed wheat, and turf. The viability analysis was done in plastic plates containing BDA. For the bioassays involving exposure to ultraviolet light and temperature, BDA was also used for viability analysis, and each treatment was exposed to the UV radiation for 0, 25 and 50 seconds, the temperature exposure being at 20, 25, 30 and 35º C. Using a Potter tower, 2 mL of fungus suspension from each treatment was inoculated to the Diatraea saccharalis caterpillars. Regarding the sporulation, the largest concentrations of M. anisopliae and B. bassiana were found for the treatments with parboiled rice, type-1 rice, type-2 rice, yellow corn flour, corn flour and crushed wheat. The viability of all treatments was superior to 94.00%. Also, the longer the duration of the exposition to the UV, the smaller the number of fertile conidia. At 35o C, a significant loss of conidia viability was observed, and all the treatments presented some level of virulence.

Produção de conídios do fungo entomopatogênico Metarhizium anisopliae em diferentes condições de cultivo e em biorreator de bandeja

Pós-graduação em Microbiologia - IBILCE