Tobacco mildew is a common fungal disease of great economic importance as it causes leaf rot during tobacco storage, seriously impacting the yield and quality of tobacco. Scientists from the College of Tobacco Science at Henan Agricultural University in China led a study that investigated the inhibitory effect of endophytic bacteria on fungal pathogens as it pertains to tobacco mildew biocontrol and identified bacterial biocontrol resources for controlling tobacco mildew and improving tobacco quality.
In the study, three strains of dominant tobacco mildew pathogens were isolated from the surface of diseased tobacco leaves and used as pathogens to select five antagonistic bacterial strains with good inhibitory effects against tobacco mildew disease.
The results revealed that the antagonistic mechanism of ZH-2 against pathogens was the production of cell wall hydrolases. Fermentation results showed that strain ZH-2 affected the chemical composition and improved the volatile flavor content and quality of tobacco leaves. Therefore, strain ZH-2 can be used as a potential biocontrol agent for the control of tobacco mildew disease and the improvement of tobacco quality during storage.