Screening and identification of biocontrol strain Serratia grimesii CNY-04 against Botrytis cinerea

Abstract:

[Objective] In order to study the effect of soil bacteria against vegetable Botrytis cinerea, we isolated 9 strains from 56 samples obtained from greenhouses in Liaoning and Shandong Province in China. [Methods] The plate-confrontation method and antibacterial circle method were used for preliminary screening and antimicrobial testing in vitro, respectively. The effect of strain CNY-04 against vegetable Botrytis cinerea was measured in detached condition. The taxonomic identification of strain CNY-04 was studied by analyzing its morphology characteristics, physiological and biochemical characteristics, and 16S rRNA gene sequence. [Results] Strain CNY-04 exhibited genetic stability and strong antagonistic ability on vegetable Botrytis cinerea. From the taxonomic identification result, this bacterium was identified as Serratia grimesii. Strain CNY-04 inhibited Botrytis cinerea on tomato by 69.23%, close to that of 75.39% by carbendazim 50 WP. The incidences of Botrytis cinerea in groups inoculated with strain CNY-04 were 40.0% at 24 h and 51.1% at 48 h. [Conclusion] Strain CNY-04 is a potential biological control agent for vegetable Botrytis cinerea.