FUNGAL DISEASES Characterization of Trichoderma species isolated in Ecuador and their antagonistic activities against phytopathogenic fungi from Ecuador and Japan Luis Galarza 1 • Yasunori Akagi 2 • Kazumi Takao 1 • Chang Sun Kim 3 • Nitaro Maekawa 3 • Akihiro Itai 2 • Esther Peralta 4 • Efre ´n Santos 4 • Motoichiro Kodama 1 Received: 22 September 2014 / Accepted: 9 December 2014 Ó The Phytopathological Society of Japan and Springer Japan 2015 Abstract Native Trichoderma spp. were isolated from agricultural fields in several regions of Ecuador. These isolates were characterized via morphological observation as well as molecular phylogenetic analysis based on DNA sequences of the rDNA internal transcribed spacer region, elongation factor-1a gene and RNA polymerase subunit II gene. Fifteen native Trichoderma spp. were identified as T. harzianum, T. asperellum, T. virens and T. reesei. Some of these strains showed strong antagonistic activities against several important pathogens in Ecuador, such as Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Panama disease) and My- cosphaerella fijiensis (black Sigatoka) on banana, as well as Moniliophthora roreri (frosty pod rot) and Monilioph- thora perniciosa (witches’ broom disease) on cacao. The isolates also showed inhibitory effects on in vitro colony growth tests against Japanese isolates of Fusarium oxys- porum f. sp. lycopersici, Alternaria alternata and Roselli- nia necatrix. The native Trichoderma strains characterized here are potential biocontrol agents against important pathogens of banana and cacao in Ecuador. Keywords Trichoderma spp. Á Biocontrol Á Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense Á Mycosphaerella fijiensis Á Moniliophthora roreri Á Moniliophthora perniciosa Introduction Trichoderma, a cosmopolitan soil-borne fungus that inter- acts with root systems, soil and foliar environment (Hjel- jord and Tronsmo 1998), is an important biological agent for controlling plant pathogens. Trichoderma spp. have been reported to control several phytopathogens of diverse crops by various mechanisms such as the production of antifungal metabolites, competition for nutrients and space, mycoparasitism and promoting defense mechanisms (Hoyos-Carvajal et al. 2008; Woo and Lorito 2007). The mycoparasitism of Trichoderma strains is characterized by hyphal coiling around host hyphae, haustoria and penetration into host cell walls (Abdullah et al. 2007). Knowledge of the Trichoderma taxa is important both for control efficiency and environmental conservation when Trichoderma is introduced as a biocontrol agent into the rhizosphere of a given ecosystem. To identify and characterize Trichoderma spp., mor- phological characteristics should be considered along with molecular data from DNA sequencing (Samuels 2006). In addition, a multigene approach using at least two unlinked loci is desirable for the molecular identification of closely related Trichoderma spp. The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the ribosomal DNA (rDNA) is one of the most reliable targets for identifying a strain at the species level (Kullnig-Gradinger et al. 2002). Genes EF-1a and Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10327-015-0587-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. & Motoichiro Kodama mk@muses.tottori-u.ac.jp 1 The United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Tottori University, 4-101 Koyama-Minami, Tottori 680-8553, Japan 2 Faculty of Agriculture, Tottori University, 4-101 Koyama- Minami, Tottori 680-8553, Japan 3 Fungus/Mushroom Resource and Research Center, Faculty of Agriculture, Tottori University, 4-101 Koyama-Minami, Tottori 680-8553, Japan 4 Biotechnology Research Center of Ecuador, Higher Polytechnic College of the Littoral CIBE-ESPOL, Campus Gustavo Galindo, Km 30, 5 Perimetral Road, Guayaquil, Ecuador 123 J Gen Plant Pathol DOI 10.1007/s10327-015-0587-x