Effectiveness of biocontrol activity against two Phaeoacremonium species involved in grapevine pruning wound infection

Abdullah, Shahad Najemadeen; Haleem, Raed Abduljabbar; Sulayman, Media Mohammed

doi:10.58928/ku25.16321

	Effectiveness of biocontrol activity against two Phaeoacremonium species involved in grapevine pruning wound infection
Kirkuk University Journal for Agricultural Sciences (KUJAS)
Volume 16, Issue 3, September 2025, Pages 183-191 PDF (724.71 K)
Document Type: Research Paper
DOI: 10.58928/ku25.16321
Authors
Shahad Najemadeen Abdullah^* ; raed Abduljabbar Haleem; Media Mohammed Sulayman
Plant protection/ Agricultural engineering science/ University of Duhok/Iraq/Duhok
Abstract
Grapevine cuttings (canes) inoculated with Phaeoacremonium species (Ph. aleophilum and Ph. hungaricum) exhibited brownish discoloration and necrotic cankers. In a dual culture antagonism assay, Trichoderma harzianum demonstrated the highest efficacy, inhibiting Ph. aleophilum (93.3%) and Ph. hungaricum (75.8%) by rapidly colonizing the medium and competing the pathogens, covering over three-fourths of the plate. The food poisoning assay further confirmed T. harzianum as the most potent antagonist, with inhibition rates of 86.8% for Ph. aleophilum and 70.5% for Ph. hungaricum, followed by Bacillus subtilis (80.3% and 61.6%, respectively). Saccharomyces cerevisiae exhibited strong suppression of Ph. minimum (80.4%) but limited inhibition of Ph. hungaricum (17%), while Clonostachys rosea inhibited Ph. aleophilum (67.5%) and Ph. hungaricum (42.3%). The potential dissemination of bacterial and fungal biocontrol agents via nursery propagation materials was investigated by assessing their efficacy against Phaeoacremonium aleophilum and Ph. hungaricum in detached grapevine canes. Treatments included bacterial strains (Pseudomonas fluorescens, Bacillus subtilis) and fungal strains (Trichoderma harzianum, Clonostachys rosea, Saccharomyces cerevisiae). Among these, Clonostachys rosea demonstrated the highest antagonistic activity, significantly reducing canker lengths to 10.6 mm and 13 mm for Ph. aleophilum and Ph. hungaricum, respectively. In contrast, P. fluorescens was the least effective, with canker lengths of 21.3 mm. T. harzianum, B. subtilis, and S. cerevisiae also limited disease development to varying extents. A detached cane assay confirmed the efficacy of these antagonists, with C. rosea again showing the strongest suppression. These results highlight the potential of C. rosea as a promising biological control agent against grapevine trunk pathogens.
Keywords
Phaeoacremonium aleophilum; Ph. hungaricum; Grapevine; Trichoderma harizianum; Bacillus subtilis

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