Why in News?

• Scientists in Kerala have completed the whole genome sequencing of a Rare Bacterium capable of producing antifungal and insecticidal compounds.
• This has opened up the potential to develop a new line of products for Biocontrol applications in Agriculture.

Obtained from soil:

• Researchers isolated some strains of actinomycetes (a kind of hairy bacteria) from the forest soils of the Neyyar wildlife sanctuary, one of the 12 mega diversity centres in the world.
• One of the isolates was identified as Streptosporangium nondiastaticum reported to have antimicrobial properties.

Helping Biocontrol:

• Bioinformatics analysis showed that the genome contained a plant chitinase, an enzyme capable of degrading fungi and insect exoskeleton.
• The scientists have cloned the gene and engineered the recombinant protein.
• The strain can produce metabolytes that are toxic to plant pathogens, making it a candidate for biocontrol applications.
• Across the world, fungal phytopathogens cause significant agricultural crop loss, both in farmlands and post-harvest storage conditions.
• The use of micro-organisms to control phytopathogens and pests offers an important alternative to chemical fungicides and pesticides which result in environmental pollution and development of resistance in fungal pathogens.