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Research article - Peer-reviewed, 2015

Biosurfactants Have the Potential to Induce Defence Against Phytophthora infestans in Potato

Bengtsson, Therese; Holefors, Anna; Liljeroth, Erland; Hultberg, Malin; Andreasson, Erik

Abstract

Potato late blight caused by Phytophthora infestans is one of the most destructive plant diseases worldwide. Currently, its management mainly relies on the frequent use of synthetic chemicals, and there is a need to develop more sustainable strategies. Biosurfactants produced by fluorescent pseudomonads have been shown to rapidly, within 1 min, cause zoospore lyses. This study investigated if the biosurfactant-producing strain Pseudomonas koreensis 2.74 and its biosurfactants have the potential to induce resistance in potato to late blight. The experiments were performed with treatments of whole plants of the susceptible potato cultivar Bintje and the partially resistant cultivar Ovatio. A significant disease reduction and an induced secretion of proteins such as pathogenesis-related (PR) protein 1, within the leaf apoplast, were observed in the potato cultivar Ovatio after treatment with the biosurfactant at a concentration of 1 mg ml(-1). No significant effects on disease development were observed after treatment with the bacterial suspension of Pseudomonas koreensis 2.74.

Keywords

Apoplast; Induced resistance; Late blight; PR-1; Secretome; Solanum tuberosum

Published in

Potato Research
2015, Volume: 58, number: 1, pages: 83-90
Publisher: SPRINGER