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Light‐emitting Diode Blue Light Alters the Ability of Penicillium digitatum to Infect Citrus Fruits
Author(s) -
Lafuente María T.,
Alférez Fernando,
GonzálezCandelas Luis
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
photochemistry and photobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.818
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1751-1097
pISSN - 0031-8655
DOI - 10.1111/php.12929
Subject(s) - penicillium digitatum , spore , conidium , darkness , postharvest , biology , germination , spore germination , penicillium , blue light , fungus , botany , horticulture , inoculation , petri dish , blue mold , microbiology and biotechnology , materials science , penicillium expansum , optoelectronics
Penicillium digitatum (Pers.:Fr.) Sacc. is the main fungus causing postharvest losses in citrus fruits. Previous work showed the potential of LED blue light ( LBL ) in controlling P. digitatum growth. Here, we have investigated whether LBL alters the ability of this fungus to infect citrus fruits. Before fruit infection, Petri plates inoculated with the same conidia concentration were held under darkness (control) or LBL (100 μmol m −2 s −1 ) for 8 d (continuous light), or were treated with the same LBL for 3 d and then shifted to darkness for 5 d (non‐continuous light). Spores from cultures exposed to continuous light showed very low capacity to germinate (1.8% respect to control) but a high viability and a similar morphology and ability to infect the fruits than spores from control cultures. The number of spores produced in plates exposed to non‐continuous light was slightly lower than in control plates, but they showed much lower viability and lower capacity to infect the fruits. This effect was more likely related to aberrant morphology of spores, which formed aggregates, than to its metabolic activity or its ability to produce ethylene that might contribute to destroy natural defense barriers from the fruit.