Isolation of Dark Septate Endophyte (DSE) from Ferns (Pteris Vittata) Roots

Dark Septate Endophytes (DSE) are a group of ascomycetes that live in intracellular and extracellular root tissue to facilitate plant growth and stress tolerance in extreme environments. However, little is known about the DSE fungi isolated from certain plant roots such as Pteris vittata, especially under drought condition. Pteris vittata is known for its ability to live in various types of substrates and ecosystems. In this study, we obtained DSE fungi from the fern roots Pteris vittata collected from the area of Universitas Negeri Jakarta. DSE isolation was carried out by inoculating the Pteris vittata fern roots with a size of 0.5 cm on the surface of sterilized PDA media for 5-7 days at 27∘C. Observations were made every 24 hours using a stereo microscope to see the first hyphae appeared from the plant roots. The results exhibited 13 samples of roots with hyphae colonization and were suspected to be DSE fungi. Of the 13 root isolates, only 3 isolate (PP2, PP4A, and PPB) showed the DSE growth (23%) with melanin pigment. The morphological characteristics of endophytic DSE fungi collected from Pteris vittata roots represented septate hyphae, brownish to black colony color, a growing zone, and a velvety texture. For the isolate PP2, it showed sclerotia while for the isolate PP4, it exhibited light brown colonies. Keywords: isolation, DSE, ferns, pteris vittata, roots