Interaction between Aspergillus niger fungus and other filamentous fungi on salt-agar medium and their growth on natural wood and wood treated with fungicide

IRG/WP 15-20569

A Fojutowski, A Kropacz, A Koziróg

Aspergillus niger (An) is very often used alone or in mixture with other filamentous fungi of the genus in testing biocides in disinfection procedures, safety, hygiene, medical fields as well as for testing resistance of wood and wood-based materials to moulds. Softwood species as well as hardwood are overgrown with An fungus very easily, causing drop of mainly the aesthetic value of wood product. The fungus can cause human and animal diseases and pose a threat to environment. The aim of this research was to identify the interaction between An fungus and some other filamentous fungi, the growth rate of Aspergillus niger fungus on salt-agar medium in comparison to other filamentous fungi and to compare its growth on Scots pine wood both natural and chemically preserved with model wood preservative. It was observed that the growth rate of Aspergillus niger (An) fungus in one-species test has been showed similar to the growth rate of Chaetomium globosum (Cg) and Paecilomyces variotii (Pv ) fungi but distinctly, about two-fold, slower than Trichoderma viride (Tv) growth rate. It was not stated the antagonism between Aspergillus niger and other tested fungi however Trichoderma viride, Chaetomium globosum and Penicillium funiculosum limited, to some extent, the growth of Aspergillus niger fungus. The method of “direct infestation” of wood with An spores causes faster covering the wood surfaces by fungus with bigger intensity of its growth than the method of “indirect infestation” causes. The model wood preservative even at 200g/m2 retention do not full effectively controlled the growth of An fungus on Scots pine sapwood, however largely decreased it in grade depend on wood preservative retention. The used instrumental method (determination of total colour change ΔE and determination of ergosterol content) very clearly quantified results of fungus growth on wood and were useful as supplementary way for assessment the susceptibility of wood to Aspergillus niger growth.


Keywords: filamentous fungi, growth, wood, model fungicide, instrumental methods, efficacy

Conference: 15-05-10/14 Vina del Mar, Chile


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