Evaluation of conidia production and mycelial growth in solid culture media from native strains of entomopathogenic fungi isolated from citrus-growing areas of México

Abstract

It is important to know the ability of native strains to carry out the process of sporulation and growth in different conditions and to determine their possible potential as biological control of pests of agricultural importance, mainly in citrus areas. The objective of this study was to evaluate five different solid culture media for the determination of the production of conidia and mycelial growth of twenty-five native isolates from the Mexican states of Sinaloa, San Luis Potosí, Nuevo León and Tamaulipas, and three collection strains using five different solid culture media. The results showed no statistical significant difference between the five media tested for the production of conidia per milliliter and mycelial growth among different isolates. However between isolates a significant difference was found. For conidia per milliliter, the isolate with the highest production of conidia was HIB-4 with an average of 4.85 x 10⁹ (spores/ml). With respect to mycelial growth strain Ma presented the highest value with 8.06 cm on average.

Key words: Entomopathogenic fungi, esporulation, conidia, mycelial growth.