Fungi identification and test on red calliandra (Calliandra calothyrsus) seed as potentially antagonist agent

Abstract

Red calliandra (Calliandra calothyrsus) is an essential economic plant and used as a renewable energy source. Seed-borne fungi can be beneficial or detrimental. One of the beneficial roles of fungi is as an antagonistic agent. Red calliandra seed is commonly infected by pathogenic fungi such as Fusarium sp., Aspergillus sp., and Rhizopus sp. The purpose of this research was to identify the fungi in red calliandra seeds, which are potential as an antagonistic agent, and to study their ability to inhibit the growth of pathogenic Fusarium sp., Aspergillus sp. and Rhizopus sp. The seeds obtained are from Sukabumi, West Java, Indonesia. Fungi were isolated by soaking the seeds with 1% NaOCl for three minutes then washed with sterile aquadest. It was repeated three times. Furthermore, the seeds were sown on moist paper media and incubated until a fungus colony emerged, which is expected to be a potential antagonistic agent. The result showed that there was one isolate of fungi that was potential as an antagonistic agent; it was Talaromyces sp. It indicates that the antagonistic agent can be isolated from seeds. The inhibition percentages of Talaromyces sp. against Aspergillus sp., Fusarium sp., and Rhizopus sp. at seven days old were 67.92%, 59.4%, 8.89%, respectively. Talaromyces sp. can inhibit the growth of Fusarium sp. Rhizopus sp. and Aspergillus sp. in overgrowth at 14 days old. The antagonistic mechanism of Talaromyces sp. to Aspergillus sp., Fusarium sp. and Rhizopus sp. is microparasitism and competition. Talaromyces sp. isolated from red calliandra seeds were potential as antagonistic agents.