Impact of fungicides and nanoparticles on Ustilaginoidea virens causing false smut disease of rice

Abstract

False smut of rice caused by Ustilaginoidea virens is now becoming a serious disease of rice causing 5-85 per cent yield losses in India. Different fungicides have been used for the management of false smut of rice. Apart from this, application of nanoparticles has been considered an alternate and effective approach for the control of plant pathogenic. These nanoparticles have a great potential in the management of plant diseases as compared to synthetic fungicides. In the present investigations, six novel fungicides viz., hexaconazole, copper oxychloride, propiconazole, kresoxim methyl, azoxystrobin and carbendazim and four nanoparticles viz., aluminium, silver, titanium oxide and silicon carbide were evaluated in vitro on Ustilaginoidea virens. Among the evaluated fungicides, propiconazole was best at both 50 and 100 ppm concentration caused 100 per cent inhibition followed by azoxystrobin, hexaconazole, kresoxim methyl, carbendazim and copper oxychloride. Among four nanoparticles, silver nanoparticles were best at 100 ppm (67.11%) followed by silicon carbide nanoparticles (60.17%).