A Volatile Substance, β-Caryophyllene, from Talaromyces wortmannii Promotes Growth and Tolerance to Diseases on Several Plants

A plant growth-promoting fungus, Talaromyces wortmannii strain FS2 was isolated from an agricultural field at Okayama Pref. FS2 enhanced seed germination, root elongation and leaf growth of Brassica rapa var perviridis (Komatsuna). Such plant growth-promoting effect was observed in the same sealed chamber where FS2 was cultured on PDA medium separated from seedlings, suggesting effective volatile compound(s). GC‒MS analysis showed that FS2 emitted at least seven terpenoids, of which a volatile was identified as β‒caryophyllene. β‒caryophyllene alone promoted the growth of cucumber, Nicotiana benthamiana and barley. Furthermore β‒caryophyllene increased the yield of cucumber fruits. Interestingly, we found that β‒caryophyllene conditioned these plants to be resistant to respective diseases caused by Colletotrichum orbiculare, Botrytis cinerea or Blumeria graminis f. sp hordei. The findings indicate that β‒caryophyllene has desirable dual features and therefore, it is available to cultivation of many crops.

原著論文 (Original paper)