https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1821-0244
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ABSTRACT
Background
Microbial endophytes can be beneficial to host plants, improving resistance against biotic and abiotic stress. While beneficial fungal endophytes have been well characterised in temperate grasses, knowledge about fungal endophytes of tropical grasses is limited.
Aims
We investigated the diversity of fungal endophytes associated with Brachiaria, a tropical grass genus native to Africa to source candidate endophytes for developing as beneficial inoculants for cultivated Brachiaria.
Methods
Fungi were isolated from asymptomatic tillers of nine Brachiaria species. Morphological and molecular techniques were used to investigate the taxonomic identities and phylogenetic relationships of the putative fungal endophytes.
Results
One hundred and seventy-seven fungi were isolated, generating 38 operational taxonomic units (OTU) in total, which were predicted to represent 38 potential species. The most common isolates were related to Acremonium, Cladosporium, Emericellopsis, Plectosphaerella and Sarocladium. Multiple strains of Sarocladium terricola were detected and shown by molecular and morphological characterisation as identical to the first recorded seed-transmitted endophyte from Brachiaria, originally identified as Acremonium implicatum.
Conclusion
A large and genetically diverse collection of putative endophytes from Brachiaria have been identified. Future work will elucidate whether any of these could be developed as beneficial endophyte inoculations able to offer bio-protective benefits for the health of Brachiaria.
Acknowledgements
A collaborative research programme supported this study entitled ‘Climate-smart Brachiaria grasses for improving livestock production in East Africa’ with financial support from the Government of Sweden (Sida) and Grasslanz Technology Limited (GTL). We thank the partners of this collaborative programme: BecA-ILRI (International Livestock Research Institute) Hub, Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO), Rwanda Agricultural Board (RAB), International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and GTL. We would like to thank Catherine McKenzie for her valuable statistical advice, guidance and support. We also thank Kennedy Odokonyero for providing DNA of the deposited strain of A. implicatum.
Disclosure statement
Dr. John Caradus is the CEO of Grasslanz Technology Limited, one of the companies sponsoring this research.
Additional information
Funding
Notes on contributors
Suliana E. Teasdale
Suliana E. Teasdale is a plant and fungal biologist, specialising in fungal endophyte discovery in forage crop species, such as Brachiaria, maize, carrot and Brassica, as well as studying the fungal community diversity in ecological systems.
John R. Caradus
John R. Caradus , Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand; Honorary Fellow of the New Zealand Institute Agricultural and Horticultural Science, Fellow of the Agronomy Society New Zealand and Life Member of New Zealand Grassland Association, is Chief Executive of Grasslanz Technology Ltd, a fully owned subsidiary of AgResearch Ltd, based in New Zealand. He has a background in agricultural research with particular emphasis on plant breeding.
Linda J. Johnson
Linda J. Johnson is a fungal molecular biologist who leads a multidisciplinary research team with expertise in plant-microbe interactions, with a primary emphasis on understanding and utilising endophytic fungi to add value to New Zealand’s agricultural industries.