• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.75-78
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• 2003

A lichen-forming fungus was successfully isolated by discharged spore method from Korean lichen (Hetero-dermia sp.) and cultivated in pure culture. The isolate JR0012 inhibited mycelial growth of several plant-pathogenic fungi. Mycelial growth of the four Pythium spp. tested was completely inhibited. Potato dextrose broth was found to be the medium favorable for large-scale production of antibiotics from the isolate. Anti-fungal substances produced in axenic culture were partially purified. This is the first report in Korea of lichen-forming fungus successfully isolated and which exhibited strong antifungal activity against plant-pathogenic fungi, especially the four Pythium spp..

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.381-385
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• 2006

Antifungal activity of Korean and Chinese lichen-forming fungi(LFF) was evaluated against plant pathogenic fungi of Botryosphaeria dothidea, Botrytis cinerea, Diaporthe actinidiae, Pestalotiopsis longiseta, Pythium sp., Rhizoctonia solani, and Sclerotium cepivorum. The LFF were isolated from Cladonia scabriuscula, Melanelia sp., Nephromopsis asahinae, Nephromopsis pallescens, Parmelia laevior, Pertusaria sp., Ramalina conduplicans, Ramalina sinensis, Ramalina sp., Umbilicaria proboscidea and Vulpicida sp. with discharged spore method. The isolates were deposited in the herbarium of Korean Lichen Research Institute(KoLRI) in Sunchon National University. The LFF of Melanelia sp., P. laevior, Pertusaria sp., R. conduplican and Ramalina sp. exhibited strong antifungal activity against all of the pathogenic fungi examined. Among them, LFF of P. laevior showed more than 90% of inhibition in fungal hyphae growth, compared with control. The results imply that LFF can be served as a promising bioresource to develop novel biofungicides. Mass cultivation of the LFF is now under progress in laboratory conditions for chemical identification of antifungal substances.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.202-206
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• 2008

Antifungal activity of Korean and Chinese lichen-forming fungi (LFF) was evaluated against plant pathogenic fungus of Colletotrichum acutatum, causal agent of anthracnose on hot pepper. This is the first attempt to evaluate antifungal activity of LFF, instead of lichen thalli, against C. acutatum. Total 100 LFF were isolated from the lichens with discharged spore method or tissue culture method. Among the 100 isolates, 8 LFF showed more than 50% of inhibition rates of mycelial growth of the target pathogen. Especially, Lecanora argentata was highly effective in inhibition of mycelial growth of C. accutatum at the rate of 68%. Antifungal activity of other LFF was in the order of Cetrelia japonica (61.4%), Ramalina conduplicans (59.5%), Umbilicaria esculenta (59.5%), Ramalina litoralis (56.7%), Cetrelia braunsiana (56.5%), Nephromopsis pallescensn (56.1%), and Parmelia simplicior (53.8%). Among the tested LFF, 61 isolates of LFF exhibited moderate antifungal activity against the target pathogen at the inhibition rates from 30 to 50%. Antifungal activity of the LFF against C. acutatum was variable at the species level rather than genus level of LFF. This study suggests that LFF can be served as a promising bioresource to develop novel biofungicides.