Corn colonizing fungus could help it fend off disease and grow

Corn colonizing fungus might help it fend off disease and grow

Heidi Crnkovic, AGDAILY*

Image : Allexxandar, Shutterstock

A fungus that can colonize or grow in corn plants doesn’t just leave the plants unharmed – it can also help them ward off pests and other fungi, according to a new study by researchers. Penn State researchers.

In this study, researchers from College of Agricultural Sciences studied the effects of the mushroom Metarhizium robertsii on corn. They found that when the fungus colonized corn, the plants were less vulnerable to the effects of another fungus, Cochliobolus heterostrophus (Bipolaris maydis)which causes the disease helminthosporiosis.

They also found that corn plants grown from seed treated with M. robertsii were taller and heavier than plants grown from untreated seed.

Ms Mary Barbercheck, professor of entomology, said the results – recently published in PLOS One – suggest that M. robertsii might be an important tool to grow a crop and help it avoid disease, especially for organic growers.

« There has been a lot of interest recently in biological products to put on seeds or plants to replace or supplement synthetic chemicals. said Ms. Barbercheck. ” These results might be used to develop a treatment to be applied to the plants or to the seeds before sowing. This might then help promote growth and protect plants from pests and disease. »

According to the researchers, M. robertsii is a fungus that scientists have studied for hundreds of years as a means of controlling insects. But while researchers knew the fungus might infect and kill insects, it wasn’t until a decade ago that they discovered the fungus was also an endophyte – an organism, like some bacteria and certain fungi, which live inside plants without harming them and which can also potentially benefit them.

Meanwhile, Ms. Barbercheck said there is a strong demand for organic livestock products in the United States. For example, for a chicken to be labeled “ biological he must have consumed organic foods, such as corn, throughout his life. For corn to be considered organic, growers must use primarily ” physical, mechanical and biological to control pests, weeds and diseases, according to the United States Department of Agriculture.

« For grain growers, there are hardly any cheap pesticides they can use said Ms. Barbercheck. ” We looked at how we can help the plant’s ability to tolerate or fight off pests and diseases, and here’s this fungus that’s common in agricultural environments that we thought might also have a ‘other advantages »

To test their hypothesis, the research team applied spores of M. robertsii on corn seeds before sowing the treated and untreated seeds in a greenhouse. Once the plants were large enough to have reached the three- or four-leaf stage, the scientists applied C. heterostrophus – the fungus responsible for helminthosporiosis – on treated and untreated plants.

Four days later, they measured plant height, aboveground biomass, plant colonization by M. robertsii and severity of helminthosporiosis infection.

The researchers found that 74% of the plants whose seeds had been treated with spores of M. robertsii were successfully colonized by this fungus. Corn grown from seeds treated with M. robertsii exhibited less severe leaf blight and greater height and aboveground biomass than plants grown from untreated seed.

Ms Barbercheck said she and her colleagues will continue to explore in the future how the fungus interacts with maize – for example, how environmental conditions, such as soil moisture, influence its effects.

« As climate change affects the frequency of droughts and floods, we want to see how different environments might alter how this fungus colonizes corn and benefits it. said Ms. Barbercheck. ” The research reported in this article took place under ideal conditions in the laboratory and in a greenhouse, so we want to take it to the next level by examining it in different environments. »

Mr. Imtiaz Ahmad, former postdoctoral researcher at Penn StateMs. María del Mar Jiménez-Gasco, Professor of Plant Pathology, and Ms. Dawn S. Luthe, Professor of Plant Stress Biology, also participated in this work.

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture of the United States Department of Agriculture and its program Organic Transitions helped support this research.

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* Heidi Crnkovic is the associate editor ofAGDAILY. Originally from New Mexico, she has deep roots in the Southwest and a passion for all things agriculture.

* Source : Corn-colonizing fungus may help repel disease, grow larger | AGDAILY