title: Bacterial ghost technology for pesticide delivery.
abstract: Bacterial ghosts are nondenaturated empty cell envelopes of Gram-negative bacteria produced by E-mediated lysis. Such envelopes from the plant-adhering bacterium Pectobacterium cypripedii were tested for their ability to adhere to plant material and to be used as carriers for pesticide delivery. We show, using fluorescence-labeled P. cypripedii ghosts, that depending on the target plants 55 or 10% (rice or soya, respectively) of the applied bacterial ghosts was retained on the leaves after heavy simulated rain (84 mm). Furthermore, the bacterial ghosts could be loaded with the lipophilic triazole fungicide tebuconazole. In subsequent plant experiments in the glass house, the efficacy of the loaded bacterial ghost for resistance to rainfall and the protective and curative effects against the pathogens Erysiphe graminis, Leptosphaeria nodorum, and Pyrenophora teres on barley and wheat and against Sphaerotheca fuliginea on cucumber were tested. The bacterial ghosts were compared primarily with a commercial tebuconazole formulation, a wettable powder, as it has similar physical characteristics. The comparison revealed similar effects and showed consistently higher or comparable efficacy against the pathogens. The standard operational comparison with the most protective, cereal specific emulsion of oil in water displayed that the bacterial ghosts had equal to or lower efficacy than the emulsion. This study confirmed the potential of bacterial ghost platform technology as a new alternative carrier system for pesticides.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Microbiology and Genetics, Section Microbiology and Biotechnology, University of Vienna, UZAII 2B522 Althanstrasse 14, A-1090 Vienna, Austria. tamas.hatfaludi@univie.ac.at
authors.forename: Tamás
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hatfaludi
authors.forename: Martina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Liska
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zellinger
authors.forename: Jarju Pa
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Ousman
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Szostak
authors.forename: Arpád
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ambrus
authors.forename: Katri
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Jalava
authors.forename: Werner
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lubitz
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion; D002462:Cell Membrane; D004337:Drug Carriers; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D044043:Pectobacterium / Q000648:ultrastructure; D010575:Pesticides; D018515:Plant Leaves; D010944:Plants / Q000187:drug effects; D014230:Triazoles / Q000008:administration & dosage
chemical_list: D004337:Drug Carriers; D005456:Fluorescent Dyes; D010575:Pesticides; D014230:Triazoles; C087114:tebuconazole; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate