Microbial

antagonists of
Plant pathogens
PRT172 Lec 3-5

Ruben Gapasin, Ph. D.

Elvira Oclarit, Ph. D.
Justine Bennette Millado, D. g. Sci.
Important terms
• Antagonists – is a microorganism that adversely
affects another (target pathogens) growing in
association with it.
• This includes:
• Competition
• Antibiosis - parallel to allelopathy (chemical inhibition of
one plant by another)
• Predation
• Hyperparasitism - parasite of plant parasite (target pest)
• Mycoparasitism - parasite of fungus
Mechanisms in biological control
• Factors external to the host – those that involved some
form of antagonisms:
• Antibiosis
• Competition
• Exploitation predation or hyperparasites

• Factors Internal to the host

• Induced plant resistance
• Competition for some receptor sites
• Use of transmissible agents (hypovirulence)
How can inoculum density be reduced?
•Crop rotation
•Clean tillage
•Use of biocontrol agents
Examples of biological control
of plant pathogens
A. Reduction of
inoculum of target
pathogen
1. Destruction (direct
exploitation) of spores,
sclerotia or inoculum of a
pathogen by natural enemies

• E.g. oospores of Pythium,

Phytophthora and downy
mildew are vulnerable to
hyperparasites

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/313127464
2. Reduction of virulence, aggressiveness, or survival ability
of the pathogen by viruses or virus-like agents specific for the
pathogen

Ex. Introduction of a
mixture of normal and
hypovirulent R. solani into
soils in pots = less disease
in bean caused by normal
R. solani
3. Prevention of inoculum formation

Aerially disseminated pathogens

ACTION OF ANTAGONIST

Infection of few plants

Infection of many plants by secondary

inoculum
Sphaerellopsis sp.
• Mycoparasite of corn rust, Puccinia
polysora
• Paningbatan & Bastasa (1997)
collected 31 isolates from the
Visayas & Mindanao
• Inhibited the uredospore
germination of P. polysora by 69-92%
• Reduced infection efficiency from
75-82%
https://content.eol.org/
 4. Displacement
of plant pathogen
with antagonists
in infested crop
residues

Example: Use of
Trichoderma to preempt
pathogens that colonize
dead plant materials
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/258051232/
Mode of action of Trichoderma
• A. Competitive action – for active
sites or substrates and physical
restriction or “squatters right”
• B. Antibiotic activity due to the
secretion of antibiotic or
metabolic substances that inhibit
parasite activity
Mode of action of Trichoderma
• C. Produces a variety of antibiotic
metabolites:
• e.g. volatile pyrone, harziano-
pyridone
• D. Lytic enzymes – chitinases,
proteases, glucanases
• Acts on fungal cell walls
• Ex. These enzymes can be induced
by growing Trichoderma spp. on cell
walls of Rhizoctonia
Mode of action of Trichoderma

• E. Predatory effect or direct parasitic

action against the pathogen
• F. Growth stimulation
• Stimulate plant growth directly
• Rhizosphere – competent Trichoderma
produced
• Growth stimulating
metabolite
• Suppression of minor
pathogens around roots
Examples of Trichoderma-based Commercial
Products

• Trichoderma viridae –
control a variety of diseases
• T. koningii and T. harzianum
– treated seeds resist
“damping off”
B. Protection of Plant Surface
• Agrobacterium radiobacter strain K-84
• Host Pathogen: A. tumefaciens – crown gall
• Mechanism – competition and antibiotic – Agrocin 84

• Mycorrhizae
• Mutualistic relationship with plant roots
• Integration of plant roots and fungal mycelia forming integrated
morphological units
• Mutualistic: both partners in the relationship derive nutritional benefits
Types of Mycorrhiza
• Ectomycorrhiza –
Ascomycete or
Basidiomycete
• Form external sheet
approximately 40 nm thick
• Endomycorrhiza –
Phycomycetes, develop
within the root
• Vesicular-arbuscular (VA)
Ectomycorrhiza • On pine and fine roots
• Common in gymnosperms
and angiosperms

• Mechanism:
• Antibiotic
• Mechanical barrier
• competition
 Ectomycorrhiza: benefits
1. Growth hormone results in longevity of feeder roots
2. Increased rate of nutritional absorption from soil
3. Selective absorption of certain ions from soil
• Ex. N-containing compounds, phosphate, potassium, calcium
4. Resistance to plant pathogens
• Produce antibiotics
• Serve as physical barrier
• Produce volatile organic acids (fungistatic effects)
• Roots produce inhibitors
5. Increased tolerance to toxins
• Rhizosphere
• thin layer of soil adhering to a
root system after the loose
soil has been removed by
shaking
• soil region in contact with
plant roots
• Rhizoplane
• Microorganisms attached to
the plant root occur within
the rhizoplane
• Rhizobacteria – bacteria
which colonize the roots
B. Protection of Plant Surface: Bacterization
•Bacterial treatments of seeds and roots
•can cause “root colonization”
•Effect of rhizobacteria on the host plant
• Deleterious
• Neutral
• Beneficial
 PGPR – Plant Growth-
• Plant growth Promoting Rhizobacteria
promotion
• Directly: produce
metabolites which
stimulate plant
growth

• Indirectly : reduce
activity of native
rhizoplane fungi
and bacteria
Bacterization: Examples
•A. Strain Pf-5 of Pseudomonas
fluorescens
•seed treatment of cotton
Lysis zone
due to seedlings: 30-70% survival of
Pseudomonas
seedlings in soil with Rhizoctonia
solani
•Mechanism: antibiotic inhibits
the pathogen
B. Protection of Plant Surface: Induced plant
resistance
• Use of non-pathogenic fungi and bacteria
• Induce the host plant to produce phytoalexin that can
inhibit pathogen
• E.g. carnation cuttings treated with non-pathogenic
Fusarium stem rot of carnation
• Cross protection – ability of one strain of virus to
prevent the expression of the effect of a second strain
C. Pathogen Suppressive Soils
Soils where natural biological control occurs
 Suppressive soils may result from:
• Natural microbiological make-up of the soil
• May develop with certain management practices that
encourages resident antagonists

https://www.wur.nl/
Suppressive soils (SS)
Example – Fusarium Wilt Suppressive Soil

•Pathogen will not

establish but
produces little or no
disease

https://www.redalyc.org/journal