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A comparative study of endophytic and epiphytic fungal association with leaf of Eucalyptus citriodora Hook., and their antimicrobial activity

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Abstract

Eucalyptus citriodora Hook, is frequently cultivated tree in India for its wood and medicinal usages. The endophytic and epiphytic fungi were estimated from healthy leaves of E. citriodora growing in the premise of Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India. A total of 33 fungal species were isolated from leaf segments. Of 33 taxa, 20 were recorded as endophytes, while 22 as epiphytes. Nine, out of 33 species were found to be common in leaf tissues and surfaces (Alternaria alternata, Aspergillus fumigatus, A. terreus, Cladosporium cladosporioides, Drechslera rostrata, Humicola grisea, Nigrospora oryzae, Penicilliumcristata, and Pestalotia sp.). Out of 478 fungal isolates, 279 were epiphytic while only 199 were endophytic. Most isolates were anamorphic filamentous fungi which often don’t produce sexual spores. The Sorensen’s index of similarity between endophytes and epiphytes (leaf surface colonizers) was found to be at 0.300. Diversity index of fungal species was higher in endophytes than epiphytes. The frequency of colonization differs greatly in both myco-populations. Cladosporium cladosporioides (26%) was dominant species on leaf surfaces while Botrytis cinerea (10.5%) was dominant in leaf tissues. Out of 16 endophytic isolates evaluated for antagonistic test, 8 (50%) gave the antagonistic activity against variety of fungi representing pathogens to both humans and plants.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are thankful to the head, Dept. of Botany, BHU Varanasi for extending necessary facilities. Authors woe their thank to Dr. Ragini Tilak (I.M.S., BHU) for providing human pathogens and to Prof. Ramesh Chand (Inst. Ag. Sc. BHU), for phytopathogens. The help of Dr. R. Sagar, Botany, BHU, is gratefully acknowledged for statistical analysis. The financial support to SKG from CSIR, New Delhi, is appreciated.

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  1. Mycopathology and Microbial Technology Laboratory, Department of Botany, BHU, Varanasi, 221005, India

    Ravindra N. Kharwar, Surendra K. Gond, Anuj Kumar & Ashish Mishra

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  1. Ravindra N. Kharwar
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  2. Surendra K. Gond
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  3. Anuj Kumar
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  4. Ashish Mishra
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Correspondence to Ravindra N. Kharwar.

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Kharwar, R.N., Gond, S.K., Kumar, A. et al. A comparative study of endophytic and epiphytic fungal association with leaf of Eucalyptus citriodora Hook., and their antimicrobial activity. World J Microbiol Biotechnol 26, 1941–1948 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11274-010-0374-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11274-010-0374-y

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