“I see the agricultural landscape of the future as having multiple products for plant disease control that are quite bespoke,” says Dr Jake Malone, co-founder of PfBio, a spinout from the John Innes Centre.
PfBio is using naturally occurring and beneficial soil bacteria to suppress plant diseases. This type of ‘biocontrol’ is achieved by identifying varieties of the bacteria Pseudomonas that associates with a particular crop and boosting its presence, so it outcompetes the pathogen. It will be discussing biocontrol in the Innovation Hub 2022.
Biocontrol outcompetes the pathogen
Jake explains that Pseudomonas is a very strong and talented biocontrol organism.
“There are many different ways that biocontrol by bacteria can take place. The first is direct competition, where the beneficial bacteria consumes all of a particular micronutrient or fills the niche where the pathogenic bacteria would grow, so it is excluded and prevented from invading the crop plant. Another mechanism is through the production of antibiotics or toxins that selectively kill the disease-causing organism.”
Jake explains that there is significant interest in biocontrol, as the direction for travel of agrochemicals is withdrawal.
“In addition to the widely publicised impact on insect pollinators, broad spectrum agrochemicals kill beneficial microorganisms as well as the target and this degrades soil health and reduces its ability to store carbon. Biocontrol strains are generally harmless to the environment, and are often specific to a particular pathogen, so the future will be identifying and isolating strains that will perform different functions.
“My background is in molecular microbiology, so I have developed an understanding of the bacteria that are associated with plants; my co-founder Andy Truman studies the natural products produced by the bacteria, such as antimicrobials and toxins. Together this is a powerful combination of skills for companies looking to move into biocontrol.”
Jake explains that biocontrol also has a beneficial side-effect: it boosts resilience of the crop plant.
“All plants have an immune system, and if this is primed to expect a pathogen attack then the plant can develop a defence. Pseudomonas can stimulate the plant immune system as well as promoting plant growth, which increases both health and yield.”
Jake and his colleagues will be participating in the Innovation Hub at the Royal Norfolk Show on 29-30 June 2022 to talk to farmers and others about biocontrol and how it works. He is looking forward to gaining feedback on the views of the industry about this disruptive and highly beneficial approach.
