Chitosan-based fungal metabolite nanoformulation for eco-friendly disease control in grapes

Overview

Chemical pesticide toxicity remains a critical environmental and agricultural concern, creating urgent demand for safer disease management strategies. This solution introduces a novel biopesticide concept: encapsulation of bioactive fungal secondary metabolites within chitosan nanoparticles to enable smart delivery of the right amount of active substance, to the right place, at the right time.

The formulation leverages natural mycoparasitic fungi that produce antimicrobial and plant growth-promoting secondary metabolites, including indole acetic acid, fusaric acid, and gibberellic acid. By conjugating these metabolites with chitosan nanoparticles, the technology aims to improve environmental stability, controlled release, and commercial viability of biopesticides for grape disease management, particularly against downy mildew caused by Plasmopara viticola.

Technical specifications

Key features:

• Isolation and characterization of natural mycoparasites with demonstrated bioactivity against grape pathogens
• Production, extraction, and quantification of biocontrol secondary metabolites from selected mycoparasite strains
• Development and characterization of secondary metabolite–chitosan nanoparticle conjugates (SM-Chi-NP)
• Chitosan-based encapsulation enabling sustained and controlled release of active compounds
• Dual functionality combining disease suppression with plant growth promotion
• Eco-friendly, biodegradable formulation designed to reduce reliance on chemical pesticides
• Validated fungal strains previously deposited in recognized culture collections

Technology readiness level

The underlying research foundation has been established through doctoral work involving isolation and characterization of natural mycoparasites active against Plasmopara viticola, along with documentation of their antibiotic and plant growth-promoting metabolite production. The chitosan nanoparticle encapsulation concept is supported by prior literature on sustained-release capabilities.

Future validation activities include selecting the most effective mycoparasite strain, producing and quantifying target secondary metabolites, developing and characterizing the SM-Chi-NP conjugate, and evaluating its efficacy for disease control, plant growth, and grape yield. The technology is currently at an early-to-mid research and development stage, requiring formulation optimization and field validation before commercial readiness.