Prospecting, production and formulation of microorganisms with potential for the control of soybean pests/linked to the Center of Excellence in Biological Control

• Grant number: 22/04694-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctorate
• Effective date (Start): July 01, 2022
• Effective date (End): June 30, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Plant Health
• Acordo de Cooperação: Koppert Brasil
• Principal Investigator: Italo Delalibera Júnior
• Grantee: Janaina Brandão Seibert
• Host Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil
• Host Company: Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ)
• Associated research grant: 18/02317-5 - Center for Excellence in Biological Control, AP.PCPE

Abstract

The entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium (= Nomurea) rileyi causes highmortalities in populations of leaf feeding caterpillars and has potential to be used asmycoinseticida. The production of this fungus is limited when solid fermentation is usedin rice grains, so the development of a new production method is necessary to increasethe yield of infective propagules. In this sense, the submerged liquid fermentationarises, where the fungus multiplication is carried out in media of liquid cultures with highagitation and it is possible to induce the production of infectious propagules calledblastospores (Jaronski & Mascarin, 2016). Blastospores are yeast cells produced bybudding, septation or fragmentation of the hyphae shortly after penetration into the host. The advantage of the production of blastospores by liquid fermentation is due to thepossibility of these propagules being produced quickly and abundantly, which willfacilitate their production process and extraction of the culture medium (Mascarin et al.,2015b). In addition to obtaining a large amount of infective propagule, it is necessary todevelop a method for the stabilization and desiccation tolerance of blastospores to beused in the formulation of a mycoinsecticide. To date, in Brazil there is no bioproductbased on entomopathogenic fungi blastospores and no product with M. rileyi. Studies ofthe Microbial Pathology and Control Laboratory have demonstrated the possibility of M. rileyi blastospore production (> 2 x 109 blastopores/mL after 3 days of fermentation), however, there is still a need to improve the liquid culture media used for fermentationthat result in blastospores with desiccation tolerance, to develop a drying method and aformulation that is adequate for the control of caterpillars of the Spodoptera complex. (AU)