Trichoderma spp. are ubiquitous soil fungi. By virtue of their ability to decompose organic matter, they are free-living in soil as saprophytes. However, these species also have the capability to live on other fungi, and the ability to colonize plant roots and rhizosphere. Trichoderma spp. produce a range of hydrolytic enzymes that make them useful in industry (Mach and Zeilinger 2003). These fungi are capable of parasitizing some plant pathogenic fungi that makes them useful as biofungicides (Mukhopadhyay et al. 1992; Chet et al. 1998; Mukhopadhyay and Mukherjee 1996; Harman and Bjorkmann 1998; Hjeljord and Tronsmo 1988) (Fig. 10.1).
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Mukherjee, P.K., Nautiyal, C.S., Mukhopadhyay, A.N. (2008). Molecular Mechanisms of Biocontrol by Trichoderma spp.. In: Nautiyal, C.S., Dion, P. (eds) Molecular Mechanisms of Plant and Microbe Coexistence. Soil Biology, vol 15. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-75575-3_10
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