A Potential Approach to Coffee Anthracnose Management using Streptomyces flaveus RT1-1

Abstract Vietnam is the world’s second-largest coffee exporter, renowned for its strong, bold Robusta coffee. The Central Highlands, particularly Dak Lak Province, offer ideal conditions for coffee cultivation, thanks to a cool climate, red basalt soil, and distinct rainy and dry seasons. However, climate change has intensified challenges for Vietnam’s coffee industry, leading to a rise in anthracnose disease, which significantly threatens coffee productivity. Current management strategies rely heavily on chemical fungicides, raising concerns about human health, environmental pollution, and disruption of microbial ecosystems. In this study, the anthracnose-causing pathogen was isolated from infected coffee plants in Dak Lak and identified through morphological and molecular characterization as belonging to the genus Colletotrichum . The pathogen’s growth was completely suppressed when incubated in the fermentation supernatant of Streptomyces flaveus RT1-1. Furthermore, cell powder derived from the fungal biomass was found to be utilized by S. flaveus RT1-1 to produce chitinase. The findings suggest that S. flaveus RT1-1 can be potentially used for management of anthracnose in coffee, offering a sustainable alternative to chemical fungicides.