UTILIZATION OF ARBUSCULAR MICORRHIZAL FUNGI

TO CONTROL FUSARIUM WILT OF TOMATOES

By:
Wafiyyatunnufus (B1B015006)
Vio Indah Budiarti (B1B015009)

STRUCTURAL TASK OF SOIL BORNE PLANT PATHOGEN

MINISTRY OF RESEARCH, TECHNOLOGY, AND HIGHER EDUCATION

JENDERAL SOEDIRMAN UNIVERSITY
FACULTY OF BIOLOGY
PURWOKERTO
2018
 I. INTRODUCTION

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is one of the most important vegetable

plants in the world. tomato has been bred to improve productivity, fruit quality, and
resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses. Tomato has grown almost worldwide as a
field and greenhouse crop. The problem encountered in tomato production is
Fusarium wilt which is known as devastating disease that caused by Fusarium
oxysporum. The disease is controlled mainly by soil fumigation in conventional
production, whereas in sustainable systems, inoculating plant roots with mycorrhizal
fungi are used (Bolandnazar et al., 2014).
The soil-borne ascomycete Fusarium oxysporum is a pathogenic fungus
common in soils around the world, and the cause of fusarium wilt, a deadly vascular
wilting syndrome in plants. Collectively, these F. oxysporum strains infect and kill a
large host range including many commercially harvested crops such as species in the
Solenaceae family (tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, eggplant). Fusarium oxysporum
attacks its host by entering through the root. It grows in the plant xylem, eventually
blocking the vascular system. This prevents transport of water and nutrients to the
rest of the host, causing wilting, discoloration, and ultimately death of the plant
(Synder and Hansen, 1940).
Fusarium causes yellowing on one side of the plant or leaf. Yellowing begins
with the older leaves followed by wilting, browning, and defoliation. Growth is
typically stunted and little or no fruit develops. Brown, vascular tissue can be found
on the base of the infected stem. Infected plants often die before maturing.
Continuous application of fungicides cause not only plant pathogen resistance but
also negative impact towards consumer and environment. Biological control is one of
reliable alternative control (Tahat et al., 2012).
Arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) fungi has a positive correlation to some aspects
of the physiology of host plants, one of which is lessen disease effects
(Simanungkalit et al., 2006). Mycorrhizae biofertilizer is an environmentally friendly
input which supports sustainable agriculture concept. AM fungi are obligate
symbionts which required photosyntates of the host plant. The potency of AM fungi
as biological control agent needs to be proved to determine its ability to improve
growth and yield of tomatoes, as well as effectiveness in controlling Fusarium wilt of
tomato.
 II. DISCUSSION

Soil borne pathogens were controlled by using several agricultural

practices methods, such as resistant cultivars, seed certification, chemical
fungicide, crop rotation and soil fumigation etc. Therefore, many researchers
were trying to use alternate approaches based on either manipulating or adding
microorganisms to enhance plant protection against pathogens ( Grosch et al.,
2005). The antagonism mechanism is one of alternative method of biological
control, Endomychorrizae become one of the example of biological agent
especially in controlling pathogen on wilt Tomato disease.
The infection process of Arbuscular mycorrhizae is colonization of roots
begins by the secretion of enzymes by arbuscular endomycorrhizae allowing hyphae
to penetrate the epidermal and fleshy cortical cells of plant roots. Two to three days
after colonizing the cell, the hyphae form structures within plant cells called
arbuscules which resemble tiny trees and serve to facilitate the transfer of nutrients
within the cortical cells. The function of Arbuscular mycorrhizae (AM) are provide
the plant with certain fertilizer elements and water from the soil, and in turn, the
plant provides sugars and other carbohydrates for the fungus (Allen et al., 1995).
Different mechanisms have been reported to explain bio-control by
AMF including biochemical changes in plant tissues, microbial changes in
rhizosphere, nutrient status, anatomical changes to cells, changes to root
system morphology and stress alleviation (Hooker  et al., 1994). Therefore,
those mechanisms by which AMF could control the soil borne pathogen are
listed below.
Enhancing plant nutrition uptake make improvements in plant growth
followed by root colonization by AMF occurs as a result of enhancement of
the mineral nutrient status of plants. phosphorus induced changes in root
exudation could reduce the germinations of pathogen spores . The competition
for space between AMF and pathogen, AMF may increase host tolerance to
pathogen by increasing the uptake of essential (Tahat et al., 2010).
Plant root systems colonized by AMF differ in their effects on the
bacterial community composition within the rhizosphere and rhizoplane .
Several biotic and a biotic factors are very important for determination of
efficiency of AMF as a disease control agent. The most important factors are,
soil moisture, soil contents, host genotype, mycorrhizal level inoculums,
inoculation time of mycorrhiza, mycorrhizal fungi species virulence,
inoculums potential of pathogen and soil microflora (Tahat et al., 2010).
The effect of AMF in plant shoot was reported in by many researchers. One
of the experimental was done by researcher from Agricultural faculty of Putra
Malaysian university about “The potential of endomycorrhizal fungi in controlling
tomato bacterial wilt disease using different treatment of fungal”. The Different
species of AMF lead to different plant responses for the colonization and different
effects on pathogens by using species such as G. mosseae , R. solanacearum and
Scutellospora sp. R. solanacearum treatments. The result showed the significance
different between treatments on shoot weights can be explained the ability of
mycorrhizal plant to uptake more essential nutrient from the soil. G. mosseae
suppressed totally the pathogen symptoms, so no symptoms were observed. The
plants treated with G. mosseae exhibited the most vigorous growth with root growth
parameters were significantly better than the others and the root surface area was also
significantly larger. The N, P and K concentration and micronutrients (Fe and Zn)
contents in plant shoots was statistically increased due to mycorrhizal colonization
on plant which treated by G. mosseae (Tahat et al., 2012).
Root morphology system can be altered due to the colonization of root
by AMF. Roots colonized by AMF are more highly branched compared to non
colonized plants and also the adventitious root diameters are larger which can
provide more infection sites for a pathogen.  The colonization of tomato root
by Glomus mosseae lead to a bigger root size and more branching which
increase the number of root tips, length, surface area and root volume (Tahat
et al., 2010). 
The fast growth of AMF plant can be explained by the ability of mycorrhizal
plant to increase the uptake of nutrients such as N, P and K from the soil. The
current results agree with the results published by Dehne (1982), he found that the
growth of the plant inoculated with the AMF and the pathogens were more resistant
to the pathogen due to the more nutrients absorbed from the soil. One of the most
acceptable mechanisms proposed to explain the biocontrol by AMF is the
enhancement of the crop nutrient uptake. AMF may increase host tolerance to
pathogen by increasing the uptake of essential nutrients rather than phosphorus
which are otherwise deficient in the non-mycorrizal plants ( Gosling  et al.,
2006). The AMF spores germinate and thick-walled hyphae penetrate the host
root causing internal infection. After penetrating into the root, the hyphae
spread inter- and/or intra-cellularly in the root cortex without damaging the
integrity of the cells (Strack et al., 2003). The increasing nutrient uptake
resulted in more vigorous plants; thus, the plant itself may be more resistant or
tolerant to pathogen attack.
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