Biocontrol Potential of Raw Olive Mill Waste Against <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> in Vegetable Crops

Verticillium wilt caused by the soil-borne fungus <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> causes severe losses to a broad range of economically important crops worldwide. Chemical disease management is ineffective; thus, alternative control strategies are needed. Olive-producing countries face the c...

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Main Authors: Stefanos K. Soultatos, Anastasia Chatzaki, Panagiotis A. Karas, Anastasia A. Papadaki, Georgios S. Kalantzakis, Georgios Psarras, Dimitrios E. Goumas, Dimitrios G. Karpouzas, Emmanouil A. Markakis
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Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-03-01
Series:Plants
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/6/867
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author Stefanos K. Soultatos
Anastasia Chatzaki
Panagiotis A. Karas
Anastasia A. Papadaki
Georgios S. Kalantzakis
Georgios Psarras
Dimitrios E. Goumas
Dimitrios G. Karpouzas
Emmanouil A. Markakis
author_facet Stefanos K. Soultatos
Anastasia Chatzaki
Panagiotis A. Karas
Anastasia A. Papadaki
Georgios S. Kalantzakis
Georgios Psarras
Dimitrios E. Goumas
Dimitrios G. Karpouzas
Emmanouil A. Markakis
author_sort Stefanos K. Soultatos
collection DOAJ
description Verticillium wilt caused by the soil-borne fungus <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> causes severe losses to a broad range of economically important crops worldwide. Chemical disease management is ineffective; thus, alternative control strategies are needed. Olive-producing countries face the challenge of managing olive mill wastewater (OMW) in an environmentally friendly and agronomically beneficial manner. The proper use of OMW supported by scientific research has been proposed as a valuable means for successful disease management. In this respect, we tested whether soil application of raw OMW can protect vegetable crops against <i>V. dahliae</i> and investigated the potential disease-suppressive mechanisms. OMW inhibited significantly fungal growth, sporulation, hyphae width, and conidial and microsclerotial germination <i>in vitro</i>, and these effects were dose-dependent. Moreover, the addition of OMW in the soil provided sufficient protection of eggplant and tomato against <i>V. dahliae</i> in planta. The high OMW-conferred protection of eggplant was gradually decreased, possibly due to the decreased phenolic content in OMW over time. Bioassays with sterilized soil substrate and OMW, along with isolated microbial strains, revealed that soil- and OMW-originated microbes had no role in disease suppression. Moreover, split-root set-ups suggested a non-systemic OMW-induced resistance mechanism. Root-drench application of OMW in eggplant and tomato plants did not cause significant alterations in the structure of the plant microbiome that could be associated with disease suppressiveness.
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spelling doaj-art-04335b9dbc5d4c3aadafb5101c9ff1cb2025-08-20T01:48:49ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472025-03-0114686710.3390/plants14060867Biocontrol Potential of Raw Olive Mill Waste Against <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> in Vegetable CropsStefanos K. Soultatos0Anastasia Chatzaki1Panagiotis A. Karas2Anastasia A. Papadaki3Georgios S. Kalantzakis4Georgios Psarras5Dimitrios E. Goumas6Dimitrios G. Karpouzas7Emmanouil A. Markakis8Department of Agriculture, School of Agricultural Sciences, Hellenic Mediterranean University, Stavromenos, 71004 Heraklion, GreeceInstitute of Olive Tree, Subtropical Crops and Viticulture, Hellenic Agricultural Organization—DIMITRA, Agrokipio, 73100 Chania, GreeceDepartment of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Thessaly, Viopolis, 41500 Larisa, GreeceInstitute of Olive Tree, Subtropical Crops and Viticulture, Hellenic Agricultural Organization—DIMITRA, Agrokipio, 73100 Chania, GreeceInstitute of Olive Tree, Subtropical Crops and Viticulture, Hellenic Agricultural Organization—DIMITRA, Agrokipio, 73100 Chania, GreeceInstitute of Olive Tree, Subtropical Crops and Viticulture, Hellenic Agricultural Organization—DIMITRA, Agrokipio, 73100 Chania, GreeceDepartment of Agriculture, School of Agricultural Sciences, Hellenic Mediterranean University, Stavromenos, 71004 Heraklion, GreeceDepartment of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, University of Thessaly, Viopolis, 41500 Larisa, GreeceDepartment of Agriculture, School of Agricultural Sciences, Hellenic Mediterranean University, Stavromenos, 71004 Heraklion, GreeceVerticillium wilt caused by the soil-borne fungus <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> causes severe losses to a broad range of economically important crops worldwide. Chemical disease management is ineffective; thus, alternative control strategies are needed. Olive-producing countries face the challenge of managing olive mill wastewater (OMW) in an environmentally friendly and agronomically beneficial manner. The proper use of OMW supported by scientific research has been proposed as a valuable means for successful disease management. In this respect, we tested whether soil application of raw OMW can protect vegetable crops against <i>V. dahliae</i> and investigated the potential disease-suppressive mechanisms. OMW inhibited significantly fungal growth, sporulation, hyphae width, and conidial and microsclerotial germination <i>in vitro</i>, and these effects were dose-dependent. Moreover, the addition of OMW in the soil provided sufficient protection of eggplant and tomato against <i>V. dahliae</i> in planta. The high OMW-conferred protection of eggplant was gradually decreased, possibly due to the decreased phenolic content in OMW over time. Bioassays with sterilized soil substrate and OMW, along with isolated microbial strains, revealed that soil- and OMW-originated microbes had no role in disease suppression. Moreover, split-root set-ups suggested a non-systemic OMW-induced resistance mechanism. Root-drench application of OMW in eggplant and tomato plants did not cause significant alterations in the structure of the plant microbiome that could be associated with disease suppressiveness.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/6/867bioassaysdisease suppressionmicrobiomeprotectionverticillium wilt
spellingShingle Stefanos K. Soultatos
Anastasia Chatzaki
Panagiotis A. Karas
Anastasia A. Papadaki
Georgios S. Kalantzakis
Georgios Psarras
Dimitrios E. Goumas
Dimitrios G. Karpouzas
Emmanouil A. Markakis
Biocontrol Potential of Raw Olive Mill Waste Against <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> in Vegetable Crops
Plants
bioassays
disease suppression
microbiome
protection
verticillium wilt
title Biocontrol Potential of Raw Olive Mill Waste Against <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> in Vegetable Crops
title_full Biocontrol Potential of Raw Olive Mill Waste Against <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> in Vegetable Crops
title_fullStr Biocontrol Potential of Raw Olive Mill Waste Against <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> in Vegetable Crops
title_full_unstemmed Biocontrol Potential of Raw Olive Mill Waste Against <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> in Vegetable Crops
title_short Biocontrol Potential of Raw Olive Mill Waste Against <i>Verticillium dahliae</i> in Vegetable Crops
title_sort biocontrol potential of raw olive mill waste against i verticillium dahliae i in vegetable crops
topic bioassays
disease suppression
microbiome
protection
verticillium wilt
url https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/6/867
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