title: Survival of Alternaria alternata during anaerobic digestion of biomass in stirred tank reactors.
abstract: The survival of Alternaria alternate during anaerobic digestion was investigated in context of a joint research project. The aim of this project was to estimate the phytosanitary risk of dissemination of pathogens by returning treated biomass as organic fertilizer to arable land. The studies were carried out in lab-scale stirred tank reactors under mesophilic conditions. After insertion of infected plant material into the reactors the influence on the viability of the fungal pathogen was studied concerning exposure time, pretreatment and storage of the digestates for four weeks or six months. The results clearly showed that anaerobic digestion leads to a complete inactivation of A. alternate already after an exposure time of six hours.
authors.affiliation: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Landwirtschaftlich-Gärtnerische Fakultät, Department für Nutzpflanzen- und Tierwissenschaften, Fachgebiet Phytomedizin, Lentzezallee 55/57, DE-14195 Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Schleusner
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bandte
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gossmann
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Heiermann
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Plöchl
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Büttner
mesh_terms: D000528:Alternaria / Q000502:physiology*; D000693:Anaerobiosis / Q000502:physiology; D018533:Biomass; D019149:Bioreactors; D059205:Renewable Energy; D012434:Secale / Q000382:microbiology