A comparison between Pseudomonas aureofaciens (chlororaphis) and P. fluorescens in biological control of cotton seedling damping-off disease

Due to the importance of the biological control of plant diseases, testing and introducing new biocontrol-active microorganisms is a major concern among plant pathologists. The causal agent of cotton seedling damping-off disease is Rhizoctonia solani. In this regard, we tried to investigate the antagonistic activities of Pseudomonas aureofaciens (chlororaphis) 30–84 (phenazine producing wild type and non-phenazine producing mutant) strains on R. solani, in comparison with some isolates of P. fluorescent under both in vitro (laboratory) and in vivo (greenhouse) conditions. In the laboratory experiment, the inhibitory effects of all the bacteria, on the growth of R. solani, were evaluated using the dual culture procedure. Results showed that five isolates of P. fluorescent along with both strains of P. aureofaciens significantly inhibited the growth of R. solani. Effective bacterial antagonists were then evaluated in a greenhouse experiment where cotton seeds were coated with their suspensions and were sown in pasteurised field-soil. The soil had been pre-inoculated with a virulent isolate of R. solani. The efficacy of the bacterial antagonists was evaluated by counting the number of surviving seedlings in different treatments, at 15 and 60 days after sowing, for determining pre- and post-emergence damping-off incidence. According to the results of the greenhouse experiment, at both intervals, two isolates of P. fluorescens along with both strains of P. aureofaciens caused significant increases in the number of healthy seedlings, in comparison with the untreated control, and a commonly used fungicide (carboxin-thiram). The efficacy of phenazine producing a wild type strain of P. aureofaciens was higher than its non-phenazine producing mutant, indicating that phenazine plays an important role in the antagonistic activity of P. aureofaciens. Effective bacterial antagonists were then studied for their antagonistic mechanisms. The results showed that all four bacteria employed different mechanisms. The bacteria produced siderophore, and volatile metabolites and non-volatile metabolites, in their antagonistic activities. The results of this study suggest that P. auerofaciens may be a new biocontrol agent for controlling cotton seedling mortality disease.