Deciphering the Defense Response in Tomato Against Sclerotium Rolfsii by Trichoderma Asperellum Strain A10 Through Gene Expression Analysis

Biological control agents are preferred over chemicals for managing plant diseases, with Trichoderma species being particularly effective against soil-borne pathogens. This study examines the use of a highly antagonistic strain, Trichoderma asperellum A10, and a virulent strain, Sclerotium rolfsii Sr38, identified and confirmed through ITS, β-tubulin (T. asperellum), TEF 1α, and RPB2 (S. rolfsii) sequences. In vitro and in planta experiments compared the antagonistic potential of A10 with other antagonistic fungi and fungicides against S. rolfsii. A10 achieved 94.66