Mycopesticide production by fermentation: Potential and challenges

The agriculture industry is in need of novel biopestides and development of large-scale production of mycopesticide, either fungal cells themselves or cell-free fungal components. The identification of a fungal strain with pe sticide activity, and its improvement, is the primary step in developing in fective propagules such as conidia, blastospores, chlamydospores, oospores, and zygospores as well as in preparing hydrolytic enzyme mixtures. This re view discusses various parameters for submerged and solid state fermentatio n to produce fungal structures, particularly of mycoparasitic and entomopat hogenic species that are prospective candidates for use as mycopesticides. The understanding of the molecular aspects of fungus-fungus and fungus-inse ct interactions, the role of hydrolytic enzymes especially chitinases in th e killing process, and the possible use of chitin synthesis inhibitors are the prime areas of research aimed at making fungi more effective either sin gly or in combination as mycopesticides.