Evaluation of antifungal activity of a novel chitinase protein from xenorhabdus nematophilus

Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. Lycopersici and Alternaria alternata, have been most common and destructive fungus of the tomato plants, they cause Fusarium wilt and Early blight disease in tomato respectively, which is the most economically important vegetable crop and used worldwide. Since, the chitin is the major component of the fungal cell wall and it is hydrolyzed by chitinases that results into inhibition of the fungal growth. A novel ~76 kDa protein from Xenorhabdus nematophilus, was expressed in E.coli and purified. The recombinant purified protein shows both exo and endochitinase activity and strongly inhibit the hyphal growth of fungi Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. Lycopersici and Alternaria alternate in in-vitro. We have reported first time that a novel chitinase protein from Xenorhabdus nematophilus shows antifungal activity.