Abstract:
In the present study, we aimed to screen indigenou
s rhizospheric
Bacillus
strains,
capable of producing antiphytopathogenic and plant
growth promoting traits. Isolate
CTS-B19 and CTS-G24 exhibited quite noticeable anta
gonistic activity initially against
Fusarium oxysporum
f. sp.
ciceri
and
Rhizoctonia bataticola
, and, later, against a panel of
phytopathogens. Partial 16S rRNA sequence analysis
showed that the isolate CTS-B19
and CTS-G24 exhibited 99%
homology with
Paenibacillus polymyxa
and
Bacillus subtilis
and the sequences were deposited in GenBank with ac
cession numbers KF322038 and
KF322037, respectively.
In vitro
detection for fungal wall degrading enzymes reveal
ed
that both isolates produced chitinases,
β
-1,3-glucanases, proteases and cellulases. While
siderophores and catalase activities were observed
only in
Bacillus subtilis
(CTS-G24),
both strains exhibited a positive result for
in vitro
ammonia production. Besides, the
strain CTS-B19 could also solubilize phosphate. Lyt
ic enzymes and siderophore produced
by
Bacillus subtilis
can be considered as potential antiphytopathogenic
traits involved in
the inhibition of fungal growth. Both strains exhib
ited either no or negligible antagonistic
activity against other plant growth promoting bacte
ria. Additional to antagonism, plant
growth promoting traits exhibited by these natural
biocontrol agents may suppress plant
diseases and might be applied in agriculture as an
alternative to chemical pesticides and
fertilizers.
Keywords:
Cell wall lytic enzymes,
Lytic enzymes,
Paenibacillus
spp., Siderophore.
