Acta Agriculturae Zhejiangensis ›› 2026, Vol. 38 ›› Issue (3): 506-519.DOI: 10.3969/j.issn.1004-1524.20250207

• Plant Protection • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Isolation, identification and pathogenicity determination of seed-borne fungi in Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch.

CHEN Runli1(), LIU Pengfei1, TANG Siyin2, LOU Binggan1,*()   

  1. 1. Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Crop Pathogens and Insect Pests, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
    2. Xinjiang Huafang Chinese Herbal Medicine Co., Ltd., Yuli 841500, Xinjiang, China
  • Received:2025-03-20 Online:2026-03-25 Published:2026-04-17
  • Contact: LOU Binggan

Abstract:

Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch., a valuable traditional Chinese herb primarily cultivated in northwest China, faces challenges including low seed germination, poor seedling emergence, and susceptibility to disease during the seedling stage, which hinder its industrial development. To assess the influence of seed-associated fungi on the germination and seedling establishment of licorice, fungal communities from G. uralensis Fisch. seeds collected across 19 sites in Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, Shaanxi, and Gansu were isolated, characterized using morphological and molecular methods, the dominant fungi identified were Rhizopus arrhizus, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Alternaria tenuissima, Neopestalotiopsis clavispora, and Fusarium equiseti. Petri dish assays indicated that R. arrhizus, A. niger, and A. flavus significantly reduced seedling establishment at an inoculum level of 5 spores per seed, whereas N. clavispora and A. tenuissima required 300 spores per seed to produce a similar effect. The seedling emergence rate of licorice remained unaffected even when the spore load of F. equiseti reached 600 per seed. Pot-based pathogenicity tests further demonstrated that only R. arrhizus and A. flavus significantly affected the emergence and establishment rates of licorice seedlings. At a spore load of 50 spores per seed of R. arrhizus, both the emergence rate and seedling establishment rate of licorice decreased. When the spore load of A. flavus reached 300 spores per seed, significant impacts were observed on the emergence rate, seedling establishment rate, plant height, root length and biomass of licorice. This study provided essential technical support for the prevention and control of seedling diseases in licorice cultivation.

Key words: Glycyrrhiza uralensis Fisch., Rhizopus arrhizus, Aspergillus flavus, seedling disease, seed-borne fungi

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