English
Evaluation of Trichoderma asperellum NNIBRFG 4324 as a Potential Biological Control Agent Against Ceratobasidium cereale Causing Sharp Eyespot of Wheat
Miju Jo1,2, Chawoon Kang1,2, Jaeduk Goh3, and Sook-Young Park1,2
1 Department of Plant Medicine, Sunchon National University, Suncheon 57922, Korea
2 Interdisciplinary Program in IT-Bio Convergence System (BK21 plus), Sunchon National University, Suncheon 57922, Korea
3 Fungi Research Division, Nakdonggang National Institute of Biological Resources, Sangju 37242, Korea
*Email: spark@scnu.ac.kr
Species of the genus Trichoderma are widely used as biological control agents against various plant pathogens. This study evaluated the antagonistic activity of Trichoderma asperellum NNIBRFG 4324 against several fungal plant pathogens, with particular emphasis on Ceratobasidium cereale, the causal agent of sharp eyespot of wheat, a disease increasingly severe under climate change conditions. Antagonistic activity was assessed against multiple fungal pathogens using dual culture assays. T. asperellum NNIBRFG 4324 strongly inhibited the mycelial growth of C. cereale, showing up to 88% inhibition compared with the control. In addition, in vivo assays indicated that this strain effectively reduced leaf spot symptoms in plants. These results suggest that T. asperellum NNIBRFG 4324 has potential as a biological control agent against important fungal pathogens, including C. cereale. Further studies are needed to confirm its effectiveness under field conditions. [This work was supported by the Korea Environment Industry & Technology Institute (KEITI) through a project to make multi-ministerial national biological research resources more advanced, funded by the Korea Ministry of Environment (MOE) (2021003420003).]
