Biological control of Pyrrhoderma noxium: an aggressive basidiomycete responsible for brown root rot of trees
Harrchun Panchalingam A , Cherrihan Adra A , Alison Shapcott A and İpek Kurtböke A *A
Dr Harrchun Panchalingam completed his PhD under Dr Kurtböke’s supervision in 2022 at the University of the Sunshine Coast specialising in biological control methods against Pyrrhoderma noxium using Trichoderma species. Since then, he has been working as a lab supervisor and overses the production of Driscoll’s Australia berry tissue culture operation in Queensland. His research interests are biological control of plant diseases, development of biofertilisers, bioremediation of hydrocarbons and micropropagation of plants. |
Dr Cherrihan Adra is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of the Sunshine Coast (UniSC) within the Natural Product Chemistry research group. She was awarded her PhD in 2024 specialising in biological control methods against Pyrrhoderma noxium using natural products from termite-gut bacteria under Dr Kurtböke’s supervision. After completion of her PhD, she worked on UniSC’s Critical Zone Observation site where she applied Synchrotron-based techniques to investigate sulfur oxidation states in vadose zone soil. Currently, for her postdoctoral research, she is investigating the biological activities of natural products derived from stingless bee propolis including its antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. |
Prof. Alison Shapcott has been researching the population genetics and ecology of rainforest plants and palms since 1985. She is particularly interested in the evolution and maintenance of biodiversity. She has worked with rainforest types across Australia from Tasmania to Cape Tribulation and the Northern Territory as well as in Madagascar, Papua New Guinea, Djibouti and Brunei. She has established an extensive international network and regularly collaborates with researchers at the Royal Botanical Gardens of Kew (UK), the Smithsonian Institution NMNH (USA) and the Queensland Herbarium. |
Assoc. Prof. İpek Kurtböke has been working in the field of biodiscovery and has been an active member of the international actinomycete research community since 1982. She currently conducts research and teaches in the field of environmental and applied microbiology and biotechnology at the University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland. She has also been an active member of the World Federation of Culture Collections (WFCC) and currently is the President of the Federation. She was also an Editorial Board member of Microbiology Australia for 20 years (2004–2024). |
Abstract
Globally, various biotic stressors are threatening the production of crops including wheat, cotton, maize, vegetables, fruit and ornamentals with up to 50–75% yield losses caused predominantly by fungal pathogens. One such fungal pathogen is Pyrrhoderma noxium, an aggressive basidiomycete fungus that induces the invasive disease of brown root rot in a variety of tree hosts, spanning over 250 species. This mini review will focus on various characteristics of this pathogen which is now a widespread across tropical and subtropical regions of the world infecting broad-leaved, coniferous woody, herbaceous, fruit and ornamental trees with examples of the research conducted at the University of the Sunshine Coast jointly with the Brisbane City Council.
Dr Harrchun Panchalingam completed his PhD under Dr Kurtböke’s supervision in 2022 at the University of the Sunshine Coast specialising in biological control methods against Pyrrhoderma noxium using Trichoderma species. Since then, he has been working as a lab supervisor and overses the production of Driscoll’s Australia berry tissue culture operation in Queensland. His research interests are biological control of plant diseases, development of biofertilisers, bioremediation of hydrocarbons and micropropagation of plants. |
Dr Cherrihan Adra is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of the Sunshine Coast (UniSC) within the Natural Product Chemistry research group. She was awarded her PhD in 2024 specialising in biological control methods against Pyrrhoderma noxium using natural products from termite-gut bacteria under Dr Kurtböke’s supervision. After completion of her PhD, she worked on UniSC’s Critical Zone Observation site where she applied Synchrotron-based techniques to investigate sulfur oxidation states in vadose zone soil. Currently, for her postdoctoral research, she is investigating the biological activities of natural products derived from stingless bee propolis including its antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties. |
Prof. Alison Shapcott has been researching the population genetics and ecology of rainforest plants and palms since 1985. She is particularly interested in the evolution and maintenance of biodiversity. She has worked with rainforest types across Australia from Tasmania to Cape Tribulation and the Northern Territory as well as in Madagascar, Papua New Guinea, Djibouti and Brunei. She has established an extensive international network and regularly collaborates with researchers at the Royal Botanical Gardens of Kew (UK), the Smithsonian Institution NMNH (USA) and the Queensland Herbarium. |
Assoc. Prof. İpek Kurtböke has been working in the field of biodiscovery and has been an active member of the international actinomycete research community since 1982. She currently conducts research and teaches in the field of environmental and applied microbiology and biotechnology at the University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland. She has also been an active member of the World Federation of Culture Collections (WFCC) and currently is the President of the Federation. She was also an Editorial Board member of Microbiology Australia for 20 years (2004–2024). |
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