Later events in suppression of Fusarium root rot of red pine seedlings by the ectomycorrhizal fungus Paxillus involutus

Abstract

Colonization of primary roots of red pine (Pinus resinosa Ait.) seedlings by two isolates of the fungal pathogen Fusarium oxysporum Schlecht. emend Snyd. & Hans. f.sp. pini in a sterile, soil-free system and a nonsterile rooting medium was suppressed for 2 months if the roots were exposed to the ectomycorrhizal fungus Paxillus involutus (Batsch.) Fr. for 1 week before being inoculated with the pathogen. Roots of protected seedlings harboured only a few hyphae of the pathogen. These were either vacuolated or filled with slightly electron-dense substances and did not penetrate host cells. In contrast, roots of seedlings not inoculated by P. involutus were extensively colonized by F. oxysporum, and host tissue vacuolation and disorganization occurred. Papillae, consisting of either small protuberances or elongate projections, were infrequently formed in response to infection. Chlamydospores of F. oxysporum that formed in the sterile system had numerous lipid deposits and amorphous thick walls but few mitochondria and little endoplasmic reticulum. Key words: biological control, ectomycorrhiza, Fusarium, Pinus resinosa, disease suppression.