Antagonistic Potential of Native Trichoderma spp. against Phytophthora cinnamomi in the Control of Holm Oak Decline in Dehesas Ecosystems

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Abstract

Phytophthora root rot caused by the pathogen Phytophthora cinnamomi is one of the main causes of oak mortality in Mediterranean open woodlands, the so-called dehesas. Disease control is challenging; therefore, new alternative measures are needed. This study focused on searching for natural biocontrol agents with the aim of developing integrated pest management (IPM) strategies in dehesas as a part of adaptive forest management (AFM) strategies. Native Trichoderma spp. were selectively isolated from healthy trees growing in damaged areas by P. cinnamomi root rot, using Rose Bengal selective medium. All Trichoderma (n = 95) isolates were evaluated against P. cinnamomi by mycelial growth inhibition (MGI). Forty-three isolates presented an MGI higher than 60%. Twenty-one isolates belonging to the highest categories of MGI were molecularly identified as T. gamsii, T. viridarium, T. hamatum, T. olivascens, T. virens, T. paraviridescens, T. linzhiense, T. hirsutum, T. samuelsii, and T. harzianum. Amongst the identified strains, 10 outstanding Trichoderma isolates were tested for mycoparasitism, showing values on a scale ranging from 3 to 4. As far as we know, this is the first report referring to the antagonistic activity of native Trichoderma spp. over P. cinnamomi strains cohabiting in the same infected dehesas. The analysis of the tree health status and MGI suggest that the presence of Trichoderma spp. might diminish or even avoid the development of P. cinnamomi, protecting trees from the worst effects of P. cinnamomi root rot.

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Environmental DNA metabarcoding: Transforming how we survey animal and plant communities

Kristy Deiner, Holly M. Bik, Elvira Mächler … (2018)

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Phylogenetic relationships among ascomycetes: evidence from an RNA polymerse II subunit.

S Whelen, Jie Liu, Marla B. Hall (1999)

In an effort to establish a suitable alternative to the widely used 18S rRNA system for molecular systematics of fungi, we examined the nuclear gene RPB2, encoding the second largest subunit of RNA polymerase II. Because RPB2 is a single-copy gene of large size with a modest rate of evolutionary change, it provides good phylogenetic resolution of Ascomycota. While the RPB2 and 18S rDNA phylogenies were highly congruent, the RPB2 phylogeny did result in much higher bootstrap support for all the deeper branches within the orders and for several branches between orders of the Ascomycota. There are several strongly supported phylogenetic conclusions. The Ascomycota is composed of three major lineages: Archiascomycetes, Saccharomycetales, and Euascomycetes. Within the Euascomycetes, plectomycetes, and pyrenomycetes are monophyletic groups, and the Pleosporales and Dothideales are distinct sister groups within the Loculoascomycetes. We confirm the placement of Neolecta within the Archiascomycetes, suggesting that fruiting body formation and forcible discharge of ascospores were characters gained early in the evolution of the Ascomycota. These findings show that a slowly evolving protein-coding gene such as RPB2 is useful for diagnosing phylogenetic relationships among fungi.