Studies on Isolation of Fungal Species Associated with Healthy and Infected Aloe vera Leaves Collected from Jabalpur Region

Abstract

Aloe vera is one of the highly valued medicinal plant, known for its gel filled leaves. The leaf rot disease caused by pathogenic fungi is the common cause of deterioration of gel quality and economic losses. In order to control the phytopathogenic fungi, use of endophytic and phylloplane fungi is an increasing trend. The present study was carried out to isolate the fungal species from healthy and infected leaves of Aloe vera from Jabalpur region during 2015. The study showed the isolation and identification of 22 fungal species belonging to 11 genera from healthy and infected leaves of Aloe vera from Jabalpur, India, using different isolation methods. Among 11 genera, four species of Fusarium, were highly abundant in infected Aloe vera leaves, whereas two species of Penicillium, were highly abundant in healthy Aloe vera leaves. A seasonal variation was seen for endophytes and phylloplane fungi. The study showed that the mycoflora present in healthy leaves are diverse in nature and can be exploited as biocontrol agents by understanding the patterns of host–endophyte ecology as well as identifying the mechanisms underlying the interactions among endophytes, pathogens, and hosts hold important implications for developing effective strategies of biocontrol.

Keywords: Aloe vera, phytopathogens, endophytes, phylloplane fungi, Fusarium, Penicillium, Biological control

Cite this Article

Shilpa Kaurav, Anjana Sharma, Akhilesh Ayachi. Studies on Isolation of Fungal Species Associated with Healthy and Infected Aloe vera Leaves Collected from Jabalpur Region. Research & Reviews: A Journal of Life Sciences. 2019; 9(1): 147-155p.