Combined application of a biocontrol bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa E1 - 23 with the fungicide prochloraz for the effective control of soybean root rot caused by Fusarium neocosmosporiellum
摘要
Soybean root rot, caused by Fusarium neocosmosporiellum, poses a significant threat to soybean productivity. Although chemical fungicides are widely used, their environmental risk necessitate sustainable alternatives. This study proposes an integrated control strategy combining the biocontrol bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa E1 - 23 with prochloraz. Initial screening of seven candidate bacterial strains identified E1 - 23 as the most potent antagonist, exhibiting 64.1% inhibition against F. neocosmosporiellum in dual-culture assays. Concurrent fungicide evaluation revealed prochloraz as the optimal agent (EC50 = 0.1646 μg/mL). Compatibility analysis demonstrated E1 - 23's robust tolerance to prochloraz concentrations at ≤ 50 μg/mL. In vitro combination of prochloraz (0.25 μg/mL) and E1 - 23 (1 × 106 CFU/mL) achieved 91.86% pathogen suppression, surpassing individual treatments by > 10% and theoretical additive effects. Greenhouse trials confirmed enhanced efficacy, with integrated application increasing disease control efficacy by 34.35%—significantly outperforming standalone bacterial (18.96%) or fungicide (20.52%) controls. The qRT-PCR analysis revealed that the combination application of E1 - 23 and prochloraz up-regulated the expression of some defense genes of soybean plants 5 days post-inoculation (dpi), but the induced plant disease resistance was low. This study highlights the potential of E1 - 23-prochloraz as an eco-friendly approach to mitigate soybean root rot while reducing fungicide dependency.