Diversity of culturable endophytic fungi of Hevea guianensis: A latex producer native tree from the Brazilian Amazon

Five new species of endophytic Penicillium from rubber trees in the Brazilian Amazon

The Amazon rainforest is the world's most diverse ecosystem, full of fauna and flora. Among the trees that make up the forest are the rubber trees of the genus Hevea (H. brasiliensis and H. guianensis), which stand out for the industrial use of latex. It was previously shown that endophytic fungi colonize the leaves, stems, and roots of Hevea spp. In this study, 47 Penicillium spp. and three Talaromyces spp. isolates were analyzed using specific DNA barcodes: internal transcribed spacers region (ITS), β-tubulin (BenA), calmodulin (CaM), and the DNA-dependent RNA polymerase II second largest subunit (RPB2) genes and additionally, for species delimitation, the genealogical concordance phylogenetic species recognition (GCPSR) criteria were applied. The phylogenetic analyses placed the Penicillium isolates into four sections Lanata-Divaricata, Sclerotiora, Citrina, and Fasciculata. The morphological and molecular characteristics resulted in the discovery of five new species (P. heveae sp. nov., P. acrean sp. nov., P. aquiri sp. nov., P. amazonense sp. nov., and P. pseudomellis sp. nov.). The five new species were also compared to closely related species, with observations on morphologically distinguishing features and colony appearances. Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood analysis have supported the placement of P. heveae sp. nov. as a sister group to P. globosum; P. acrean sp. nov. and P. aquiri sp. nov. as sister groups to P. sumatrense; P. amazonense sp. nov. closely related to isolates of P. rolfsii, and P. pseudomellis sp. nov. closely related to P. mellis. The study of endophytic Penicillium species of rubber trees and the description of five new taxa of Penicillium sect. Citrina, Lanata-Divaricata, and Sclerotiora as endophytes add to the fungal biodiversity knowledge in native rubber trees. Reports of fungi in native tropical plants may reveal taxonomic novelties, potential pathogen control agents, and producers of molecular bioactive compounds of medical and agronomic interest.

Endophytic Trichoderma species from rubber trees native to the Brazilian Amazon, including four new species

Fungi belonging to the genus Trichoderma have been widely recognized as efficient controllers of plant diseases. Although the majority of isolates currently deployed, thus far, have been isolated from soil, endophytic Trichoderma spp. is considered to be a promising option for application in biocontrol. In this study, 30 endophytic Trichoderma isolates-obtained from the leaves, stems, and roots of wild Hevea spp. in the Brazilian Amazon-were analyzed using specific DNA barcodes: sequences of internal transcribed spacers 1 and 2 of rDNA (ITS region), genes encoding translation elongation factor 1-α (TEF1-α), and the second largest subunit of RNA polymerase II (RPB2). The genealogical concordance phylogenetic species recognition (GCPSR) concept was used for species delimitation. A phylogenetic analysis showed the occurrence of Trichoderma species, such as T. erinaceum, T. ovalisporum, T. koningiopsis, T. sparsum, T. lentiforme, T. virens, and T. spirale. Molecular and morphological features resulted in the discovery of four new species, such as T. acreanum sp. nov., T. ararianum sp. nov., T. heveae sp. nov., and T. brasiliensis sp. nov. The BI and ML analyses shared a similar topology, providing high support to the final trees. The phylograms show three distinct subclades, namely, T. acreanum and T. ararianum being paraphyletic with T. koningiopsis; T. heveae with T. subviride; and T. brasiliensis with T. brevicompactum. This study adds to our knowledge of the diversity of endophytic Trichoderma species in Neotropical forests and reveals new potential biocontrol agents for the management of plant diseases.

Fungal endophytic community associated with Hevea spp.: diversity, enzymatic activity, and biocontrol potential

Plants of the genus Hevea present a great diversity of endophytic fungal species, which can provide bioactive compounds and enzymes for biotechnological use, and antagonist agents for plant disease biological control. The diversity of endophytic fungi associated with leaves of Hevea spp. clones in western Amazonia was explored using cultivation-based techniques, combined with the sequencing of the ITS rRNA-region. A total of 269 isolates were obtained, and phylogenetic analysis showed that they belong to 47 putative species, of which 24 species were unambiguous. The phylum Ascomycota was the most abundant (95.4%), with predominance of the genera Colletotrichum and Diaporthe, followed by the phylum Basidiomycota (4.6%), with abundance of the genera Trametes and Phanerochaete. Endophytic composition was influenced by the clones, with few species shared among them, and the greatest diversity was found in clone C44 (richness: 26, Shannon: 14,15, Simpson: 9.11). The potential for biocontrol and enzymatic production of endophytes has been investigated. In dual culture tests, 95% of the isolates showed inhibitory activity against C. gloeosporioides, and 84% against C. cassiicola. Efficient inhibition was obtained with isolates HEV158C and HEV255M (Cophinforma atrovirens and Polyporales sp. 2) for C. gloeosporioides, and HEV1A and HEV8B (Phanerochaete sp. 3 and Diaporthe sp. 4) for C. cassiicola. The endophytic isolates were positive for lipase (69.6%), amylase (67.6%), cellulase (33.3%), and protease (20.6%). The enzyme index ≥ 2 was found for amylase and lipase. The isolates obtained from rubber trees showed good antimicrobial and enzymatic potential, which can be tested in the future for use in the industry, and in the control of plant pathogens.

Isolation of endophytic fungi with antimicrobial activity from medicinal plant Zanthoxylum simulans Hance

Fungal endophytes have been found to exist in many plant species and appear to be important to their plant hosts. However, the diversity and biological activities of these fungi remain largely unknown. Zanthoxylum simulans Hance, a popular natural spice and medicinal plant, commonly known as Szechuan pepper or Chinese-pepper, grows on Kinmen Island, Taiwan. In this study, leaf and stem samples of Z. simulans, collected in summer and winter, were screened for antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory metabolite-producing endophytic fungi. A total of 113 endophytic strains were isolated and cultured from Z. simulans, among which 23 were found to possess antimicrobial activity, belonging to six fungal genera: Penicillium (26.09%, 6), Colletotrichum (21.74%, 5), Diaporthe (21.74%, 5), Daldinia (17.39%, 4), Alternaria (8.70%, 2), and Didymella (4.34%, 1). We also found that the number of species with antimicrobial activity and their compositions differed between summer and winter. Our study demonstrated that Z. simulans might contain large and diverse communities of endophytic fungi, and its community composition varies seasonally. In addition, fungal endophytes produce antimicrobial agents, which may protect their hosts against pathogens and could be a potential source of natural antibiotics.

Colletotrichum: species complexes, lifestyle, and peculiarities of some sources of genetic variability

The genus Colletotrichum comprises species with different lifestyles but is mainly known for phytopathogenic species that infect crops of agronomic relevance causing considerable losses. The fungi of the genus Colletotrichum are distributed in species complexes and within each complex some species have particularities regarding their lifestyle. The most commonly found and described lifestyles in Colletotrichum are endophytic and hemibiotrophic phytopathogenic. Several of these phytopathogenic species show wide genetic variability, which makes long-term maintenance of resistance in plants difficult. Different mechanisms may play an important role in the emergence of genetic variants but are not yet fully understood in this genus. These mechanisms include heterokaryosis, a parasexual cycle, sexual cycle, transposable element activity, and repeat-induced point mutations. This review provides an overview of the genus Colletotrichum, the species complexes described so far and the most common lifestyles in the genus, with a special emphasis on the mechanisms that may be responsible, at least in part, for the emergence of new genotypes under field conditions.

Endophytes from Wild Rubber Trees as Antagonists of the Pathogen Corynespora cassiicola

The Corynespora leaf fall disease of rubber trees, caused by the necrotrophic fungus Corynespora cassiicola, is responsible for important yield losses in Asian and African plantations, whereas its impact is negligible in South America. The objective of this study was to identify potential antagonists of C. cassiicola among fungal endophytes (i.e., Pestalotiopsis, Colletotrichum, and Trichoderma spp.) isolated from wild and cultivated rubber trees distributed in the Peruvian Amazon. We first tested the endophytes in dual in vitro confrontation assays against a virulent C. cassiicola isolate (CCP) obtained from diseased rubber trees in the Philippines. All Trichoderma isolates overran the CCP colony, suggesting some antagonistic mechanism, while species from the other genera behaved as mutual antagonists. Trichoderma isolates were then tested through antibiosis assays for their capacity to produce growth-inhibiting molecules. One isolate (LA279), recovered as an endophyte from a wild Hevea guianensis specimen and identified as Trichoderma koningiopsis, showed significant antibiosis capacity. We demonstrated that LA279 was also able to endophytically colonize the cultivated rubber tree species (H. brasiliensis). Under controlled laboratory conditions, rubber plants were inoculated with three Trichoderma strains, including LA279, in combination with the pathogenic CCP. Results showed that 1 week preinoculation with the endophytes differentially reduced CCP mycelial development and symptoms. In conclusion, this study suggests that T. koningiopsis isolate LA279-and derivate compounds-could be a promising candidate for the biological control of the important rubber tree pathogen C. cassiicola.