title: Salecan Enhances the Activities of β-1,3-Glucanase and Decreases the Biomass of Soil-Borne Fungi.
abstract: Salecan, a linear extracellular polysaccharide consisting of β-1,3-D-glucan, has potential applications in the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of salecan on soil microbial communities in a vegetable patch. Compositional shifts in the genetic structure of indigenous soil bacterial and fungal communities were monitored using culture-dependent dilution plating, culture-independent PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and quantitative PCR. After 60 days, soil microorganism counts showed no significant variation in bacterial density and a marked decrease in the numbers of fungi. The DGGE profiles revealed that salecan changed the composition of the microbial community in soil by increasing the amount of Bacillus strains and decreasing the amount of Fusarium strains. Quantitative PCR confirmed that the populations of the soil-borne fungi Fusarium oxysporum and Trichoderma spp. were decreased approximately 6- and 2-fold, respectively, in soil containing salecan. This decrease in the amount of fungi can be explained by salecan inducing an increase in the activities of β-1,3-glucanase in the soil. These results suggest the promising application of salecan for biological control of pathogens of soil-borne fungi.
authors.affiliation: Center for Molecular Metabolism, Nanjing University of Science & Technology, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Yunmei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Center for Molecular Metabolism, Nanjing University of Science & Technology, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Haiyang
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Center for Molecular Metabolism, Nanjing University of Science & Technology, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Mengyi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Center for Molecular Metabolism, Nanjing University of Science & Technology, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Center for Molecular Metabolism, Nanjing University of Science & Technology, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Shiming
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Center for Molecular Metabolism, Nanjing University of Science & Technology, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Jianfa
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D001407:Bacillus / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D018533:Biomass; D004271:DNA, Fungal / Q000032:analysis; D058645:Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis; D003910:Dextranase / Q000378:metabolism*; D005670:Fusarium / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D060888:Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; D012988:Soil Microbiology; D014242:Trichoderma / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D047071:beta-Glucans / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D004271:DNA, Fungal; D047071:beta-Glucans; C577623:salecan; D003910:Dextranase