Abstract
BACKGROUND: Sugarcane pokkah boeng disease (PBD) has emerged as a global agricultural challenge, threatening sugarcane productivity and sustainability. Amid growing concerns about excessive chemical fungicide use, biocontrol strategies have gained traction as environmentally-friendly alternatives. This study aims to establish the theoretical foundation for fusaricidin A against PBD, exploring its antifungal mechanisms and efficacy in managing the disease caused by Fusarium sacchari. RESULTS: Fusaricidin A suppressed germination of F. sacchari conidia and provided protective efficacy against PBD in glasshouse assays. With the treatment of fusaricidin A, the conidia of F. sacchari were not well-stacked, even ruptured and collapsed; the cell membrane showed irregular structure and no clear discernable level, with uneven thickness. Notably, treated cells displayed a significant increase in liposome accumulation. Fusaricidin A induced significant alterations in cellular physiology and gene expression in F. sacchari conidia. Fusaricidin A caused plasma membrane permeability disruption and enhanced spore apoptosis rate, accompanied by excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in mitochondria. Transcriptomic analysis (RNA-seq) and quantitative reverse-transcription (qRT)-PCR revealed upregulated expression of antioxidant genes GSH1, GSH2, SOD1 and SOD2, indicating a cellular stress response to ROS overload. Concurrently, downregulated Mkk1, Mpk1 and Swi4, which are well-characterized core genes in the cell wall integrity signal pathway, were identified, suggesting that fusaricidin A impairs conidial cell wall stability. CONCLUSION: The potential antifungal mechanisms of fusaricidin A involve multifaceted antifungal effects through membrane damage, ROS-mediated oxidative stress and disruption of cell wall integrity regulatory pathways. This study provides valuable insights for the effective management of plant fungal diseases and supports sustainable agricultural development. © 2026 Society of Chemical Industry.
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Claims 11
Claim · model-written summary
Fusaricidin A suppressed germination of F. sacchari conidia.
- Taxon
- sugarcanet0
- Treatment
- Fusaricidin Ae0
- Interactor
- F. sacchariFusarium saccharie0pathogen
- Outcome
- germination of F. sacchari conidiae0
- Direction
- suppressede0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“Fusaricidin A suppressed germination of F. sacchari conidia”
t0“sugarcane”
Claim · model-written summary
Fusaricidin A protected sugarcane against pokkah boeng disease in glasshouse assays.
- Taxon
- sugarcanet0
- Treatment
- Fusaricidin Ae0
- Interactor
- F. sacchariFusarium saccharie0pathogen
- Outcome
- protective efficacy against PBDe0
- Setting
- glasshouse assayse0
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Verbatim
e0“Fusaricidin A suppressed germination of F. sacchari conidia and provided protective efficacy against PBD in glasshouse assays.”
t0“sugarcane”
Claim · model-written summary
Treated F. sacchari conidia were poorly stacked, ruptured or collapsed.
- Taxon
- sugarcanet0
- Treatment
- fusaricidin Ae0
- Interactor
- F. sacchariFusarium saccharie0pathogen
- Outcome
- conidia of F. sacchari were not well-stacked, even ruptured and collapsede0
Verbatim
e0“With the treatment of fusaricidin A, the conidia of F. sacchari were not well-stacked, even ruptured and collapsed”
t0“sugarcane”
Claim · model-written summary
Treated F. sacchari conidial membranes had irregular structure and uneven thickness.
- Taxon
- sugarcanet0
- Interactor
- F. sacchariFusarium saccharie1pathogen
- Outcome
- cell membrane showed irregular structure and no clear discernable level, with uneven thicknesse0
Verbatim
e0“the cell membrane showed irregular structure and no clear discernable level, with uneven thickness”
e1“conidia of F. sacchari”
t0“sugarcane”
Claim · model-written summary
Treated cells accumulated significantly more liposomes.
- Taxon
- sugarcanet0
- Treatment
- treatede0
- Interactor
- F. sacchariFusarium saccharie1pathogen
- Outcome
- liposome accumulatione0
- Direction
- increasee0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“treated cells displayed a significant increase in liposome accumulation”
e1“conidia of F. sacchari”
t0“sugarcane”
Claim · model-written summary
Fusaricidin A disrupted F. sacchari plasma membrane permeability.
- Taxon
- sugarcanet0
- Treatment
- Fusaricidin Ae0
- Interactor
- F. sacchariFusarium saccharie1pathogen
- Outcome
- plasma membrane permeability disruptione0
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Verbatim
e0“Fusaricidin A caused plasma membrane permeability disruption”
e1“gene expression in F. sacchari conidia”
t0“sugarcane”
Claim · model-written summary
Fusaricidin A enhanced spore apoptosis.
- Taxon
- sugarcanet0
- Treatment
- Fusaricidin Ae0
- Interactor
- F. sacchariFusarium saccharie1pathogen
- Outcome
- spore apoptosis ratee0
- Direction
- enhancede0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“Fusaricidin A caused plasma membrane permeability disruption and enhanced spore apoptosis rate”
e1“gene expression in F. sacchari conidia”
t0“sugarcane”
Claim · model-written summary
Fusaricidin A caused excessive mitochondrial reactive oxygen species production.
- Taxon
- sugarcanet0
- Treatment
- Fusaricidin Ae0
- Interactor
- F. sacchariFusarium saccharie1pathogen
- Outcome
- reactive oxygen species (ROS) productione0
- Direction
- excessivee0
Not reportedComparator
Verbatim
e0“Fusaricidin A caused plasma membrane permeability disruption and enhanced spore apoptosis rate, accompanied by excessive reactive oxygen species (ROS) production in mitochondria”
e1“gene expression in F. sacchari conidia”
t0“sugarcane”
Claim · model-written summary
Antioxidant genes GSH1, GSH2, SOD1 and SOD2 were upregulated in treated conidia.
Verbatim
e0“upregulated expression of antioxidant genes GSH1, GSH2, SOD1 and SOD2”
e1“gene expression in F. sacchari conidia”
t0“sugarcane”
Claim · model-written summary
Mkk1, Mpk1 and Swi4 were downregulated in treated conidia.
Verbatim
e0“downregulated Mkk1, Mpk1 and Swi4”
e1“gene expression in F. sacchari conidia”
t0“sugarcane”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors infer that fusaricidin A impairs conidial wall stability through membrane damage, ROS stress and wall integrity regulation.
Verbatim
e0“the potential antifungal mechanisms of fusaricidin A involve multifaceted antifungal effects through membrane damage, ROS-mediated oxidative stress and disruption of cell wall integrity regulatory pathways”
e1“gene expression in F. sacchari conidia”
t0“sugarcane”