The genus Trichoderma (Hypocreaceae, Ascomycota) consists of globally distributed fungi. In Algeria, few studies have explored the diversity of this genus, and in the majority of works identification is based on phenotypic characters. Here, nine Trichoderma strains were collected from Algeria in different locations, namely: seven in the south and two in the northwest. Also, we used 17 reference strains that were taken from the NCBI database for the phylogeny analysis. Our study is based on an integrated approach using micro and macro phenotypic characters and multiple DNA analysis (internal transcribed spacer (ITS): ITS1–4 region; translation elongation factor 1: tef1 gene). Our study reports, for the first time, three species of Trichoderma in Algeria, namely: T. atrobrunneum (south), T. longibrachiatum (south), and T. afroharzianum (northwest). It is noteworthy that T. atrobrunneum is a species previously described in European Mediterranean countries, and its presence in the soil of southern Algeria indicates that the diversity of the geographic environments and different climates of Algeria offers the possibility for the survival of diverse Trichoderma species. Knowledge on the diversity of these fungi may contribute to their future exploitation in biotechnological applications and to the biological control of plant diseases.

Ascochyta blight is a major biotic constraint of faba bean (Vicia faba L.) production and productivity worldwide caused by Ascochyta fabae. No studies have been performed in Algeria to identify A. fabae isolates or to assess their pathogenicity, and therefore information on local isolates is insufficient. Herein, 14 isolates of A. fabae were obtained from faba bean samples and identified based on morphological traits and phylogenetic analysis of internal transcribed spacer sequences. All generated sequences have been deposited in GenBank and assigned accession numbers. Pathogenicity tests on faba bean plants revealed that all isolates produced necrotic lesions on aerial parts with variable intensity, classifying them as weakly, moderately, and highly aggressive. The in vitro antifungal activity of Bacillus and Pseudomonas strains against A. fabae isolates showed that Bacillus siamensis B8 and Bacillus mojavensis B31 had the highest suppressive potential against all isolates. Moreover, a negative correlation was found between the aggressiveness of A. fabae isolates and their susceptibility to biocontrol strains. This is the first report on the identification, pathogenicity and in vitro biological control of A. fabae isolates in Algeria. B8 and B31 could be further developed as promising biocontrol agents for the control of the ascochyta blight of faba bean.

The genus Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus are part of the microbiote of the gastrointestinal tract in human and animal. Certain members of these genera are beneficial to human health and are used as probiotic agents. Camel milk, in addition to its nutritional value, possesses incontestable therapeutic potential against several diseases. These important benefits prompted us to conduct this present research with the aim to firstly, charaterize tow indigenous strains and to screen their probiotic attributes and, secondly, evaluate their viability in camel milk during cold storage. Phenotypic and genotypic identification showed that strain Lb49 belongs to Lactbacillus paracasei. subsp. Paracasei, and the strain Bif21 belongs to Bifidobacterium asteroides. The study showed the safety aspect of the two identified strains, high resistance towards bile (SR> 71%), lysozyme (SR> 81%), low to moderate auto-aggregation (10.9-44.4%) and hydrophobicity (23.4-41.9) as well as antimicrobial activity against the tested pathogens with the highest scores recorded by the strain Lb49. When exposed to low pH conditions, only the strain Lb49 exhibited high tolerance with SR> 77%. Regarding the strain’s viability in camel milk, they maintained an excellent viability (93.5-100.5 %) after 15 days storage at 4° C. The characteristics demonstrated by Lb49 enable it to be used as a potential probiotic as well as Bif21 strain, as far as protection is provided for their survival by filling their intolerance to acidic stress using an adequate technique. Moreover, camel milk guaranteed excellent viability for the studied strains thanks to its physicochemical composition, acting as a good medium for nutrition and transport of probiotics.