Enhanced biocontrol activity of Trichoderma through inactivation of a mitogen-activated protein kinase

The production of lytic enzymes in Trichoderma is considered determinant in its parasitic response against fungal species. A mitogen-activated protein kinase encoding gene, tvk1, from Trichoderma virens was cloned, and its role during the mycoparasitism, conidiation, and biocontrol was examined in tvk1 null mutants. These mutants showed a clear increase in the level of the expression of mycoparasitism-related genes under simulated mycoparasitism and during direct confrontation with the plant pathogen Rhizoctonia solani. The null mutants displayed an increased protein secretion phenotype as measured by the production of lytic enzymes in culture supernatant compared to the wild type. Consistently, biocontrol assays demonstrated that the null mutants were considerably more effective in disease control than the wild-type strain or a chemical fungicide. In addition, tvk1 gene disruptant strains sporulated abundantly in submerged cultures, a condition that is not conducive to sporulation in the wild type. These data suggest that Tvk1 acts as a negative modulator during host sensing and sporulation in T. virens.