Assessment of Antifungal/Anti-Oomycete Activity of Frass Derived from Black Soldier Fly Larvae to Control Plant Pathogens in Horticulture: Involvement of Bacillus velezensis

Ghazaleh Arabzadeh, Maxime Delisle-Houde, Grant W. Vandenberg, Nicolas Derome, Marie-Hélène Deschamps, Martine Dorais, Antony T. Vincent and Russell J. Tweddell ()
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Ghazaleh Arabzadeh: Département des Sciences Animales, Université Laval, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
Maxime Delisle-Houde: Département de Phytologie, Université Laval, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
Grant W. Vandenberg: Département des Sciences Animales, Université Laval, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
Nicolas Derome: Département de Biologie, Université Laval, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
Marie-Hélène Deschamps: Département des Sciences Animales, Université Laval, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
Martine Dorais: Département de Phytologie, Université Laval, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
Antony T. Vincent: Département des Sciences Animales, Université Laval, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada
Russell J. Tweddell: Département de Phytologie, Université Laval, Quebec, QC G1V 0A6, Canada

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 14, 1-14

Abstract: Frass, the residual material resulting from the bioconversion of organic matter by black soldier fly larvae (BSFL), has gained attention as a sustainable alternative to conventional fertilizers due to its high nutrient content. Additionally, frass has been found to possess antifungal properties, which can help control plant pathogens affecting horticultural crops. In this study, frass from BSFL reared on the Gainesville diet, a universally employed reference/control diet, was investigated in vitro for its effect on the growth of seven important fungal/oomycete pathogens. Dual culture overlay assays clearly showed that fresh Gainesville diet extract, as well as BSFL frass extract derived from this diet, contained microorganisms producing compound(s) that strongly inhibit(s) the mycelial growth of fungal/oomycete plant pathogens. Fungi and bacteria were then isolated from the fresh Gainesville diet and BSFL frass using the serial dilution technique. Among the different fungi/bacteria isolated, the isolate GV1-11 in Gainesville diet and FGV15-6 in frass demonstrated strong antifungal/anti-oomycete activity. Both isolates were genetically identified by whole-genome sequencing as Bacillus velezensis , a bacterium used as a biocontrol agent, strongly suggesting that B. velezensis , which is present in the Gainesville diet, can survive the process of BSFL rearing and is one of the key factors contributing to the observed antifungal and anti-oomycete activity in the resulting frass. This work underlines the importance of the inherent microbial characteristics of feedstocks on the antifungal/anti-oomycete activity of frass and points out the possibility of exploiting frass to control plant pathogens affecting horticultural crops.

Keywords: frass; black soldier fly; Hermetia illucens; Gainesville diet; Bacillus velezensis; antifungal activity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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