Effective fungicidal action of chitosan obtained from crustacean exoskeletons on Fusarium solani f. sp. eumartii.

TERRILE, MARÍA CECILIA; MANSILLA, ANDREA YAMILA; ALBERTENGO, L; RODRIGUEZ, MS; CASALONGUÉ, CA

Rosario

Congreso; IX Congreso Argentino de Microbiología General (SAMIGE); 2013

Sociedad Argentina de Microbiologia General

Nowadays, there is an increasing interest in non-toxic fungicide as a new, sustainable and environmentally safe mean of fungal control in crop plants. Chitin and chitosan are naturally-occurring compounds that have potential in agriculture with regard to eliciting plant defense mechanisms and controlling plant diseases. Chitosan is a natural nontoxic biopolymer produced by partial alkaline N-deacetylation of chitin, the main component of crustacean exoskeletons and fungi cell walls. Several species of the genus Fusarium are plant pathogens that cause wilt diseases in several economically important plants. The aim of this work is to give insights into the properties and mechanism of chitosan obtained in our laboratory on spores and mycelium of the phytopathogenic fungus, Fusarium solani f. sp. eumartii (F. eumartii). F. eumartii is an important pathogen in solanaceas. Chitosan-mediated inhibition of F. eumartti mycelial growth occurred in a dose-dependent manner. Fungicidal activity of chitosan on F. eumartii spore was also detected. Production of nitric oxide (NO) and cell membrane permeabilization leading to cell death is triggered by chitosan in fungal spores. To evaluate the action of chitosan-treated spores in tomato seedlings a bioassay was also performed. Pretreatment of F. eumartii spores with chitosan significantly decreased disease lesions in tomato seedlings compared with mock-treated spores. All these findings reveal antifungicide properties of chitosan on F. eumartti conferring it valuable properties as fungicide with a high potential application in sustainable agricultural practices.