Research Highlights

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  • Biotechnology

Published online: 5 March 2008 | doi:10.1038/nchina.2008.50

Crop biocontrols: Dodging the rotten tomatoes

Tim Reid

Introduction

© (2008) istockphoto.com/Filonmar

Finding natural, biological replacements for synthetic fungicides has become increasingly important in recent years, because crop diseases quickly become resistant to man-made chemicals. Also the general public have become more concerned over the use of fungicides on food crops. Xiaodong Zheng at Zhejiang University in Hangzhou and co-workers¹ have completed the first trials of a marine yeast (Rhodosporidium paludigenum) as a treatment for black rot disease (Alternaria alternata) in cherry tomato crops after harvesting. This is the first time that a marine yeast has been used as a biocontrol agent of a postharvest fungal disease.

The yeast, which originates in the East China Sea, was found to greatly reduce the spread of black rot in cherry tomatoes. Out of various different treatments using the yeast, the washed cell suspension was concluded to be most successful. A high concentration of yeast cells was needed — treatments with a billion cells per millilitre reduced the incidence of black rot to only 37%, compared with 90% when the tomatoes were treated solely with sterilized water.

The yeast proved most effective when it was applied to the crop during the harvest, before any wounds or damage occurred to the fruit. It is hoped that further research into the use of marine yeasts on crops will yield other potential disease controls in the future.

The authors of this work are from:
Department of Food Science and Nutrition, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China; College of Forestry, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin, China; College of Food Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.

Reference

1. Wang, Y. et al. Biocontrol of Alternaria Alternata on cherry tomato fruit by use of marine yeast Rhodosporidium paludigenum Fell & Tallman. Int. J. Food Microbiol. doi: 10.1016/j.ijfoodmicro.2008.02.002 (2008). | Article |