The pigment violacein found in the bacterium Janthinobacterium lividum has shown high antifungal activity, which will serve to create compositions for crop protection products.
Valuable properties of the biologically active pigment violacein were revealed in the course of research conducted by young scientists of the National Research University "BelSU" under the guidance of a Doctor of biological Sciences Inna Solyanikova. The project "Development of genetic technologies on the basis of the RMC of the National Research University "BelSU" is implemented within the framework of the strategic development program of the university "Priority-2030".
Scientists have studied an indigenous strain of the bacterium Janthinobacterium lividum (yantinobacterium lividum) isolated on the territory of the Belgorod region. During the research, bacteria and pathogenic fungi were cultured together. As a result, it turned out that the bacteria Janthinobacterium lividum inhibit the growth of mold fungi dangerous to plants.
– Studies have shown a high antifungal activity of the studied strain against mold fungi, – notes the graduate student of the medical Institute Nikita Lyakhovchenko.
According to the graduate student, the growth of mycelium (vegetative body of fungi) of altenaria decreased by 10%, and aspergil decreased by 46.3% compared to control samples where fungi did not coexist with the bacterium Janthinobacterium lividum.
– Our assumptions that the bacterium is an antagonist of mold have been proven experimentally. This means that it can be used in biological products that will be in demand in agricultural production. At the same time, preparations based on it will be non-toxic when sprayed. Previously, these properties of the bacterium were not described on mold fungi. The drug based on yantinobacterium lividum can be used in agricultural production," the young scientist notes.
The ability of bacterial strains to suppress the growth of fungal and bacterial phytopathogens, as explained by the project manager, Doctor of Biological Sciences, director of the regional microbiological center Inna Solyanikova, is determined by the biosynthesis of organic molecules, in this case, the pigment violacein, which allows us to consider this strain as a potential basis for a new biological product.
– The literature describes a wide range of valuable properties of violacein, which opens up a large field of research, including the possibility of developing new compositions for plant protection products. However, the very fact of synthesis of compounds exhibiting antimicrobial activity does not make the strain a biological product. We still have to work out a scheme for cultivating the strain to obtain the largest possible amounts of violacein, develop a scheme for cleaning the compound and test a prototype of the biological product being developed in real crop production," Inna Petrovna comments.
The data obtained by Belgorod scientists are reflected in the article and may be of interest to enterprises of the Belgorod region that produce fungicides biotechnologically.
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