Development in vitro of the symbiotic fungus of Atta sexdens rubropilosa Forel, 1908 (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in culture medium with different plant extracts

摘要

> face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">The objective of this study was to evaluate the in vitro development of Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, the symbiotic fungus of Atta sexdens rubropilosa in culture medium added with extracts of 24 plant species. The fungus was inoculated in PDA added with vegetables extracts and four controls, in Petri dishes. The dishes were maintained in climate chambers at temperature of 25±1°C in the dark, to period of 42 days. The fungal growth was evaluated weekly by diameter of the colony. The results showed that the symbiotic fungus of these ants has differentiated growth when compared to the extracts provided in the dishes, and the medium supplemented with extracts of aricá (Physocalymma scaberrimum), cerejeira (Amburana acreana), cedro (Cedrela fissilis), timbó (Magonia pubescens), leucena (Leucaena leucocephala) e mogno (Swietenia macrophylla) hampered the development, however the extracts of genipapo (Genipa americana), seringueira (Hevea brasiliensis), ingá (Inga edulis) e cambará (Vochysia divergens) had better conditions for the development of the symbiotic fungus.