Evaluation of Trichoderma atroviride G79/11 growth intensity and metabolic activity under different additives using Biolog system

Trichoderma species have the ability to act as a safe and sustainable environmental way to enhance crop productivity and deal with pathogenic diversity. It is a crucial task to evaluate and boost their growth intensity and metabolic activity through an efficient and accurate method with novel nutritional sources. In the current study, Biolog MT2 microplates were used to evaluate the T. atroviride G79/11 growth intensity and metabolic activity in the presence of polysaccharide additives such as pectin fractions (water-soluble pectin-WSP, diluted alkali-soluble pectin-DASP, and oxalate soluble pectin-OSP) and bacterial cellulose (BC), fortified with inorganic salts. Pectin, as a significant component of fruit and vegetable industry waste, and bacterial cellulose, which has an exceptional water retention capacity, were used for the first time to stimulate the growth of T. atroviride G79/11. The highest metabolic efficiency of T. artoviride G79/11 was observed in WSP and OSP fractions supplemented with Ca, Zn, Mg and Fe. Glucose was recorded as a dominant constituent of BC composition, whereas galacturonic acid was detected with the highest amount of 84.53 %, 7.56 %, and 71.70 % of OSP, WSP, and DASP fractions, respectively. Applied polysaccharide solutions significantly differed in viscosity, which was also influenced by the sterilization process. The strain showed significantly high growth intensity and metabolic activity in potato dextrose broth amended with WSP, BC, ZnCl₂, saccharose, glucose, starch, and a combination of OSP with CaCl₂ additive as compared to its respective groups and combinations as well as FF-IF. This study emphasizes that natural polysaccharides and their possible composites can boost the growth intensity and metabolic activities of the fungal strain.