protein-rich hydrolysate from feather waste was obtained using a mixed culture of selected thermophilic actinomycete strains, and was tested for possible application as soil amendment and biological control agent. for this purpose, a 4 months laboratory experiment was carried out using two types of urban soils (sofia, bulgaria): native park soil and anthropogenic soil. the effect of the obtaine...

Fungi interact with plants in various ways, with each interaction giving rise to different alterations in both partners. While fungal pathogens have detrimental effects on plant physiology, mutualistic fungi augment host defence responses to pathogens and/or improve plant nutrient uptake. Tropic growth towards plant roots or stomata, mediated by chemical and topographical signals, has been desc...

In the present investigation five pathogenic fungal isolates such as Alternaria alternata, Alternaria macrospora MKP2, Alternaria macrospora MKP4 Alternaria sp. PMK1 and Alternaria sp. PMK2, were isolated from diseased leaves of parthenium plant and found to be pathogenic to this weed. Isolated pathogens were screened qualitatively and quantitatively for lignocellulolytic activities. All the fu...

Efficacy of aqueous extracts of different plant parts and biocontrol agents was tested against the growth of three post-harvest fungal pathogens of banana (Macrophomina phaseolina R-4242, Fusarium oxysporum sp. QJC1403 and Nigrospora oryzae NRRL 54030).The plant extracts when applied as preand post-inoculation treatments were effective in controlling the growth of the three pathogenic fungi. Ex...

Sixty-one endophytic fungus strains with different colony morphologies were isolated from the leaves, stems and roots of Tephrosia purpurea with colonization rates of 66.95%, 37.50%, and 26.92%, respectively. Based on internal transcribed spacer sequence analysis, 61 isolates were classified into 16 genera belonging to 3 classes under the phylum Ascomycota. Of the 61 isolates, 6 (9.84%) exhibit...

Phytotoxic microbial metabolites produced by certain phytopathogenic fungi and bacteria, and a group of phytotoxic plant metabolites including Amaryllidacea alkaloids and some derivatives of these compounds were evaluated for algicide, bactericide, insecticide, fungicide, and herbicide activities in order to discover natural compounds for potential use in the management and control of several i...

Over the past several years, RNA interference (RNAi) has emerged as a powerful genetic tool that is being exploited not only in fundamental research for the assessment of gene functions, but also in various fields of applied research in medicine and agriculture. In plants, RNAi strategies have the potential to allow manipulation of various aspects of food quality and nutritional content, but al...