Colletotricum

African Journal of Biotechnology Vol. 7 (15), pp. 2569-2572, 4 August, 2008 Available online at http://www.academicjournals.org/AJB ISSN 1684–5315 © 2008 Academic Journals

Full Length Research Paper

Use of phylloplane fungi as biocontrol agent against Colletotrichum leaf disease of rubber (Hevea brasiliensis Muell. Arg.)
Evueh, G. A. and Ogbebor, N. O.*
Plant Protection Division, Rubber Research Institute of Nigeria, PMB 1049, Benin City.
Accepted 4 March, 2008

Phylloplane fungi were used as biocontrol agent against Colletotrichum leaf disease of rubber (Hevea brasiliensis Muell. Arg.). Aspergillus sp. lysed the cytoplasm of Colletotrichum gloeosporioides on Potato Dextrose Agar. Trichophyton sp. and Gliocladium sp. antagonised C. gloeosporioides by overgrowing on it. Other phylloplanes used in this study such as Botrytis sp., Pleurothecium sp. and Staphylotrichum sp. exhibited weak antagonism on the pathogen while Gonatorrhodiella sp. and Syncephalastrum sp. showed different levels of zones of inhibition with the pathogen. Metabolites produced by Gonatorrhodiella sp. and Syncephalastrum sp. affected the pathogen by antibiosis. This finding showed that Trichocladium sp. and Trichophyton sp. exhibited the highest antagonistic effects on C. gloeosporioides. Key words: Para rubber, phylloplane fungi, biological control, disease management. INTRODUCTION Hevea brasiliensis (Muell. Arg.) commonly called para rubber, is an economic crop whose healthy existence is significant to its productivity (Rao, 1965). Rubber diseases are mainly caused by fungal pathogens (Igeleke, 1988; Begho, 1990). Colletotrichum gloeosporioides (Penz.) Sacc. is the causal agent of Colletotrichum leaf fall of rubber tree. It is one of the serious leaf diseases which affects the new flushes produced following the ‘wintering effect’, when the rubber tree loses its leaves during the dry season. The disease also affects young rubber plants under nursery conditions and when severe can lead

References: Anjaiah V, Koedam N, Nowak–Thompson B, Loper JD, Hofte M, Tambong JT, Cornelius P (1995). Involvement of phenazines and anthranitate in the antagonism of Psuedomonas aeruginoe PNA 1 and Tn 5 derivatives towards Fusarium and Pythium sp. Mol. Plant Microbe Interact. 11: 847-854. Begho ER (1990). Nursery diseases of Hevea brasiliensis in Nigeria, and their Control. Paper presented at the proceedings of a National workshop onfruit/tree crop seedling production NEARLS, Zaria, pp. 103-106. Blakeman JP (1981). Microbial ecology of the phylloplane. Academic press London, p. 502. Fokkema NJ (1973). The role of saprophytic fungi in antagonism against Drechslera sorokiniana (Helminthosporium sativum) on agar plates and on rye laves with pollen. Physiol. Plant. Pathol. 3: 195205. Igeleke CL (1988). Disease of Rubber (Hevea brasiliensis) and their control. Paper presented at the 10th Annual Conference of the Horticultural society of Nigeria, 6th - 8th November, p. 10. Handelman J Stabb EV (1996). Biological control of soil borne plant pathogens. Plant Cell. 8: 1855-1869. Jacob CK, Srinivas P, Roy CB (2006). A Laboratory manual for International training on strategies for management of Corynespora Leaf Fall Disease of Hevea brasiliensis. Rubber Research Institute of India. Kottayam, India. pp. 31-39. Jayasuriya KE, Deacon JE (1995). In Vitro interactions between Rigidoporus lignosus, the cause of white root disease of Rubber and some potentially antagonistic fungi. Journal Rubber Research Institute of Sri- Lanka, 76: 36-54. Munnecke DE, Kolbezen MJ, Ohr HD (1981). Interactions involved in controlling Armillaria mellea. Plant Dis. 65: 469-479. Ogbebor NO, AT Adekunle (2005). Inhibition of conidial germination and mycelial growth of Corynespora cassiicola (Berk and Curt) of rubber (Hevea brasiliensis Muell. Arg.) using extracts of some plants. Afr. J. Biotechnol. 4(9): 996-1000. Osando JM, Waudo SW (1994). Interaction between Trichoderma species and Armillaria root rot fungus of tea in Kenya. Int. J. Pest 2572 Afr. J. Biotechnol. Manage. 40: 69-74. Pelczar MJ, Chan ECS (1972). Laboratory exercises in microbiology Mcgraw- Hill book company, pp. 197-347. Rao BS (1965). Maladies of Hevea in Malaysia. Rubber Research Institute ofMalaysia; Kuala Lumpur. 108 pp. Tewari SN (1995). Ocimum sanctum L., a botanical fungicide for rice blast control. Trop. Sci, 35: 263-273. Vincent JM (1927). Distortion of fungal hyphae in the presence of certain inhibitions. Nature, 850. Webster CC, Baulkwill WEJ (1989). Rubber Tropical Agricultural Series. Longman Scientific and Technical. U.K., p. 614.