Effect of stress factors associated with postharvest citrus conditions on the viability and biocontrol activity of Clavispora lusitaniae strain 146

PLoS One. 2020 Sep 18;15(9):e0239432. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0239432. eCollection 2020.

Abstract

Only quite recently, we have shown that yeast strains Clavispora lusitaniae 146 and Pichia fermentans 27 can act as efficient biocontrol agents for combating postharvest fungal diseases in lemons. During postharvest and storage conditions, microorganisms are subject to different stress factors that could affect both their survival and their protective capacity. Understanding the tolerance of yeasts to environmental stress factors could support the future development and commercial application of biological control formulations based on such organisms. Thus, the impact of different stressors on the viability and protection efficiency of C. lusitaniae strain 146 and P. fermentans strain 27 was evaluated, and the yeasts were subjected to oxidative stress, thermal treatments, exposure to NaOCl, osmotic stress, and ultraviolet irradiation. Candida oleophila strain O served as the reference control. C. lusitaniae 146 was more resistant to H2O2 in plate assays; however, in liquid media there was no significant difference to the other strains. Strain 146 was less affected by NaOCl, being able to survive with 300 ppm. P. fermentans 27 was the strain most heavily affected by osmotic pressure, while strains 146 and strain O showed a similar adaptation. UV-B irradiation severely affected C. oleophila and P. fermentans, while C. lusitaniae was the most resistant. Strains 146 and 27 were similarly tolerant to thermal shocks, compared to the reference strain, which was less viable. In in vivo tests, exposure to 10 mM H2O2, 45°C or 200 ppm NaOCl prior to fruit inoculation, reduced the antagonistic activity against the pathogen Penicillium digitatum. However, in no case was the biocontrol efficiency reduced to less than 50%. As C. lusitaniae 146 demonstrated a great potential to combat P. digitatum under a wide range of conditions, the organism is a promising candidate as an effective and valuable alternative to toxic fungicides.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Citrus / growth & development
  • Citrus / microbiology*
  • Microbial Viability*
  • Oxidative Stress
  • Pest Control, Biological
  • Saccharomycetales / metabolism
  • Saccharomycetales / physiology*
  • Temperature

Grants and funding

This work was partially funded by “Proyecto PIUNT A618/2”. Martina María Pereyra and Mariana Andrea Diaz received a PhD fellowship from CONICET. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.