Bioformulation of microbial biocontrol agents for a sustainable agriculture

The application of microbial based biopesticides has become a sustainable alternative to the use of chemicals to prevent yield losses due to plant pathogens. However, microbial based biopesticides are often unsuccessfully formulated and do not meet the demanding regulatory standards required by the agencies, which hinders their commercialization. Hence, an outline on the approaches to attain more effective formulations might be useful for the development of future more effective products. With this aim, this chapter reports the current state of biocontrol strategies and describes the principles of microbial biocontrol formulations. Emphasis is placed on techniques and tools available for the development and characterisation of microbial products. To provide glimpses on the possible formulations, the different existing additives, carriers, inoculation techniques and formulation types are exhaustively reviewed. Finally, requirements and principles for efficacy evaluation of plant protection products in the European Union are include

Native Bacillus subtilis Strains Efficiently Control Lupin Anthracnose Both under Greenhouse and in Field Conditions

Colletotrichum acutatum is the cause of lupin anthracnose in the Andean zone. The pathogen affects the crop throughout its entire production cycle, causing losses of up to 100%. In previous studies, native strains of B. subtilis (CtpxS1-1; CtpxS2-1 and CtpxZ3) from the province of Cotopaxi reduced anthracnose infections in seed and seedlings. This study evaluated the potential biological control of these strains by using two lupin anthracnose susceptible cultivars under greenhouse conditions and in the field. Plants of I-451 Güaranguito and I-450 Andino cultivars were treated with active biomass from each B. subtilis strain. Pre-inoculated plants that received a bacterial concentration of 1 × 109 colony-forming units per milliliter (CFU/ml) showed a reduction by ten times in the stem lesion diameter when compared with plants artificially infected with the pathogen alone in greenhouse evaluations. Sequential applications of antagonists every two-week allow for quantifying their biocontrol efficiency under field conditions. A significant (