Survivability and storage stability of Trichoderma atroviride TRS40 preserved by fluidised bed drying on various agriculture by-products

Agriculture by-products were applied to proliferate biomass of Trichoderma atroviride TRS40 in solid state fermentation (SSF) cultures. The culture media overgrown with mycelium together with conidia were preserved by fluidised bed drying at various temperatures (50°C, 60°C and 70°C) and the received biopreparations were stored for 12 months. In order to determine the suitability of TRS40 in the production of biopreparations, the influence of preservation process and storage time on their survivability was examined. The three-component mixture proved more effective in the SSF cultures, ensuring TRS40 count at 6.07 × 109 CFU/g dm, which was ca. 6 times higher than in the mono-component medium. TRS40 survivability after preservation at various temperatures ranged from 40.4% to 100%, regardless of carrier type. In turn, after 12-month storage of the biopreparations produced on the three-component medium, regardless of drying temperature, the number of viable cells ranged from 2.43 × 108 to 2.49 × 108 CFU/g dm. Furthermore, selected parameters of growth kinetics in the Bioscreen C system were determined. The storage time of biopreparations had various effects on growth kinetic parameters. In addition, the preserved preparations based on the TRS40 retained their capability for biosynthesis of hydrolases, even after 12 months of storage.