EXPLORATION OF BACTRIOPHAGE VIRULENT TO XANTHOMONAS CAMPESTRIS PV CAMPETRIS TOWARD DEVELOPMENT AS BIOCONTROL AGENT FOR CABBAGE BLACK ROT DISEASE

Black rot disease which is caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv campetris is animportant disease on cabbage and so far could not be controlled satisfactory yet.Recently, people getting conscious the negative effect of applicating synthetic pesticidesand the importance of using biocontrol agents fo controlling pests because they arerelatively save and environmentally friendly. Bacteriophage is viruse that infectsbacteria. The use of phages for disease control is a fast expanding area of plantprotection with great potential to replace the chemical control and now prevalent.Phages can be used effectively as part of integrated disease management strategies.The relative ease of preparing phage treatments and low cost of production of theseagents make them good candidates for widespread use in developing countries as well.So far, in Indonesia bacteriophage exploration for development as biocontrol agents hasnot been conducted yet. On the other hand, Indonesia is one of view countries having alot of biodiversity resourches in the world. So it can be predicted that it is a lot ofbacteriophages strains naturally, which could be developed for biocontrol agents ofblack rot disease in cabbage. This research was aimed to isolate some bacteriophagevirulent to Xanthomonas campestris pv campetris from field. X. campestris pv campetris has been isolated from diseased cabbage in Blumbang, Tawangmangu.Biological characterization assay of 10 diseased cabbage leaf samples showed that allsample were indicated innfected by X. campestris pv campetris. Whereas plaque assayof 10 samples taken from fields showed indication of plague formation. This researchstill be continued to explore more samples form Tawangmangu, and also from othercabbage field in Central Java.