Isolation, identification and control of pathogenic endophytic fungi in tissue culture of Nymphaea candida Presl

Nymphaea candida Presl is a rare hardy water lily at risk of extinction and has been included in the 'Red List' of threatened species of the International Union for the Conversation of Nature.To protect germplasm resources and propagate N.candida seedlings, this study conducted the tissue culture for the first time and found that pathogenic endophytic fungal infection was the main reason for the failure of tissue culture. Compared with stems and leaves, the roots of N. candida exhibited a higher abundance of pathogenic endophytic fungi and had the highest rates of fungal infection during the tissue culture.Subsequently, three isolated endophytic fungi Fusarium oxysporum, Phytopythium helicoides and Alternaria sp. showed the highest frequency of occurrence in the tissue culture.Finally, the usefulness of this antifungal formulation for the inhibition of endophytic fungi in the tissue culture of N. candida was validated. This study not only provides important technical support for mass production of seedlings of N. candida, but also provides a scientific reference for the protection of endangered aquatic plant species.