Biocontrol of mycotoxigenic fungi using bacteria isolated from ecological vineyard soils

The presence of mycotoxin-producing Aspergillus species in vineyards is a problem for food safety and the economy. In addition, rising temperatures due to climate change are modifying microbial communities, causing the replacement of some fungal species and the rise of mycotoxins such as aflatoxins. The use of microorganisms as biological control agents (BCAs) is one of the most promising strategies to prevent fungal growth and toxin production. In this study, 513 microor-ganisms were isolated from organic vineyard soils in different regions of Spain. The 480 bacteria and 33 yeasts isolated were sequentially screened to select those with the most suitable charac-teristics to be used as BCAs. After identifying 16 isolates meeting all requirements, six bacterial isolates were selected to test their potential to control three relevant toxigenic grape fungi in vitro: A. carbonarius, A. niger and A. flavus. Isolates of Arthrobacter sp., Rhodococcus sp. and Bacillus my-coides showed an excellent ability to reduce the growth and mycotoxin concentration of the above-mentioned fungi and represent potential candidates for further study regarding their possible industrial application as a BCA.This research was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, grant num‐ ber RTI 2018‐097593‐B‐C21

El pódcast como herramienta docente y divulgativa: conversaciones entre estudiantes y expertos en microbiología

En el marco de este proyecto Innova-Docencia se puso en marcha el pódcast "Esto va de Micro" que se encuentra disponible en la plataforma iVoox. En los programas grabados, estudiantes de la Universidad Complutense realizaron entrevistas a expertos con los que charlaban sobre temas de actualidad en el campo de la Microbiología. El pódcast ha sido todo un reto para profesores y estudiantes pero ha conseguido de manera exitosa llevar la Microbiología a un público general fuera de la Universidad