INDIAN SCIENCE CONGRESS - India Environment Portal

Section XIV : Plant Sciences 69
86. Role of Vam And Pgpr in Plant Disease Management
Harbans Kaur Kehri
Sadasivan Mycopathology Laboratory,
Department of Botany,
University of Allahabad
Allahabad-211002
During recent past, it has been fully realized that the increase in
agricultural production through the use of chemical pesticides is contaminating
the environment, ground water and food stuffs. Therefore, during the past
few decades a significant priority has been given to search for new and
effective biocontrol agents by the research and development community.
Biological control is a reliable and safe alternative method. So far, more than
a dozen microbial biocontrol agents for plant diseases have been registered in
US and Europe. Agrobacterium radiobacter K-84 (for use against crown gall),
Pseudomonas fluorescens (against Rhizoctonia and Pythium damping off of
cotton), Gleocladium virens (against seedling disease of ornamental plants),
Trichoderma harzianum and T. polyporum (against wood decay), Bacillus subtilis
(as seed treatment), Peniophora gigantia (against Heterobasidium annosus of
conifers), Trichoderma viride (against Chondriostereum purpureum of plum trees)
are some of them.
Few more types of microbial biocontrol agents have been discovered by
the scientists who have proved their potentiality to control the deleterious
microbes beyond their expectations viz. plant growth promoting rhizobacteria
(PGPRs) and vesicular arbuscular mycorrrhiza (VAM). Both of these hold
tremendous potential for use as biocontrol agents for plant pathogens. More
emphasis will be given on the mechanism of the action and important constraints
in their wide applications.