Antagonists for the Control of Botrytis cinerea in Tomatoes: An In Vitro Evaluation and In Silico Screening By Molecular Docking of Possible Inhibitors

This study was conducted to investigate the antifungal effects of candidate antagonists Clonostachys rosea, Trichoderma harzianum, and Bacillus mojavensis against Botrytis cinerea pathogen and to examine their interactions under in vitro conditions and in silico examine by molecular docking. The effects of candidate antagonist applications on the mycelial growth of B. cinerea M2-1 isolate showed that the most effective isolate was T. harzianum C7-3 (56%) followed by B. mojavensis K193 (32%) and C. rosea C6-4 (26%). When evaluating the interactions between the candidate antagonist isolates, it was determined that T. harzianum and B. mojavensis reduced the mycelial growth of C. rosea compared to the control. In the T. harzianum × B. mojavensis combination, the fungal antagonist’s mycelial growth was inhibited when in contact with the bacterial isolate. Additionally, the effects of candidate antagonists on the root and shoot length of tomato seeds (cv. Super) were measured, and germination percentages were calculated. Clonostachys rosea (3.09 cm) and B. mojavensis (3.57 cm) promoted root development, while B. mojavensis K193 (4.02 cm) enhanced shoot development, and T. harzianum C7-3 improved seed germination percentage (86.7%) compared to the control. The molecular docking findings demonstrated that the combination of ligands from T. harzianum could synergistically enhance antifungal efficacy against B. cinerea by inhibiting or modifying proteins associated with pathogenicity and virulence. Result of in silico study highlighted the necessity for more laboratory research to validate the impact of T. harzianum-derived metabolites on the proteins of B. cinerea and their interactions.