Abstract
Description of the subject. In Morocco, expanding agricultural sector under “Morocco Green Plan” will also introduce plant diseases and plant parasitic nematodes (PPN). Soil substrate used in most of the olive nurseries is potentially inhabited by PPN and natural enemies. Objectives. This work assessed the co-occurrence of PPN and nematophagous fungi (NF) in substrates and potential of NF to suppress PPN. Method. The diversity of PPN and NF genera was characterized in 305 substrate samples, isolated from 25 olive nurseries and functional activity (nematicidal and enzymatic) of NF was evaluated. Results. High PPN diversity was detected in the isolated samples and substrates were differentiated by NF activity. Global partition between PPN and NF diversity patterns confirmed prey-predator antagonism. Moreover, PPN-NF patterns depend on the fungal survival (saprophytes vs obligate parasites) and antagonism (predation vs toxicity) processes. However, even the NF strains with maximum fitness (growth, sporulation, enzymatic activity) were not inevitably the most effective against PPN. Consequently, it was hypothesized that predation and competition could be an adaptation process of NF to overcome environmental stress and exploit alternative or supplementary nutrient sources. Conclusions. The use of diverse native NF from cultivated and wild soils offer future prospects for the development of PPN management strategies in olive nurseries.
Highlights
Soil borne fungi are one of the several microorganisms that act as antagonists to plant parasitic nematodes (PPN) (Poinar & Jansson, 1988)
Loading plot of the CIA analysis revealed a clear partition between Nematophagous fungi (NF) and PPN data (Figure 2 and Table 2)
Production of chitinase, esterase, protease, and cellulase enzymes has been very heterogeneous depending upon the strains (Figure 3 and Table 2)
Summary
Soil borne fungi are one of the several microorganisms that act as antagonists to plant parasitic nematodes (PPN) (Poinar & Jansson, 1988). These fungi include endoparasitic fungi, predacious fungi, fungi parasitizing cysts and eggs of nematodes and fungi producing toxic metabolites against nematodes (Stirling, 1991). Nematophagous fungi (NF) utilize free-living nematodes and PPN as a nutrient and energy source. They are usually facultative saprobes but their saprophytic ability varies among different species. Nematodes were considered the only nutrient source of predaceous fungi and were suggested for the biological control of PPN (Linford, 1937). Competition among various saprophytes in the soil rhizosphere to overcome nutrient deficiency should lead to enhanced nematode predation (Kerry, 2000)
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