A Practical Approach to Biofungicide Formulation: Methods and Protocols

‘A Practical Approach to Biofungicide Formulation: Methods and Protocols’ is a book that provides a comprehensive guide to the development of biofungicides. Biofungicides are biological products used to control fungal diseases in plants, and their popularity has been increasing in recent years due to their environmentally friendly nature and low toxicity. The book covers selection and screening of biofungicidal agents, culture maintenance, and development of stable and effective formulations. The role of carriers, adjuvants, and surfactants in the formulation, compatibility, and application is also elaborated. Formulation of biofungicides using Trichoderma, Pseudomonas, and Streptomyces, their scale up production, and delivery methods in sustainable disease management are also explained. The book provides a comprehensive overview of the current state of knowledge in the field and offers practical guidance for improving the efficacy and stability of biofungicide formulations. It is a must-read for researchers, students, and industry professionals looking to develop and apply biofungicides in a safe and effective manner.

Kamel A. Abd-Elsalam, Ph.D., is currently a Research Professor and Deputy Director for Research at the Plant Pathology Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center, Giza, Egypt. Dr. Kamel’s research interests include developing and improving plant biosecurity diagnostic tools, understanding fungal pathogen genomes, and creating eco-friendly hybrid nanomaterials for controlling toxigenic fungi and plant diseases, as well as applications in agroecosystems. Kamel earned his Ph.D. in Molecular Plant Pathology from Christian Albrechts University of Kiel (Germany) and Suez Canal University (Egypt). In 2008, he was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship from the same institution. Dr. Kamel served as a Visiting Associate Professor at Mae Fah Luang University in Thailand, the Institute of Microbiology at TUM in Germany, the Laboratory of Phytopathology at Wageningen University in the Netherlands, and the Plant Protection Department at Sassari University in Italy.

He has published 35 books related to nanobiotechnology applications in agriculture and plant protection with major publishing houses such as Springer, Taylor & Francis, and Elsevier. Since 2019, he has served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Elsevier book series Nanobiotechnology for Plant Protection and as the Series Editor for Applications of Genome Modified Plants and Microbes in Food and Agriculture. Additionally, he has been an active member of the Elsevier Advisory Panel since 2020, providing feedback and suggestions to improve Elsevier’s products and services. He has published more than 302 scientific research articles in international and regional specialized journals with high impact factors and has an H-index of 51, an i10-index of 163, and over 10,134 citations. He served as a Guest Editor for the Journal of Fungi, Plants, and Microorganisms, and as a Review Editor for Frontiers in Genomic Assay Technology, Agrochemicals, and Plant Nano Biology. He was ranked in the top 2% of the most influential scientists in the world in nanobiotechnology for 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 by Elsevier and Stanford University. In 2014, he was awarded the Federation of Arab Scientific Research Councils Prize for excellent scientific research in biotechnology (fungal genomics), ranking first. Additionally, he received the Egyptian State Award for Agricultural Scientific Excellence from ASRT, Egypt, in 2022 with a silver medal.

Dr. Mirza Abid Mehmood is a Lecturer in Plant Pathology at the Institute of Plant Protection, Muhammad Nawaz Shareef University of Agriculture, Multan, Punjab, Pakistan. He completed his Ph.D. in Molecular Plant Pathology from Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, P.R. China. He is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the School of Ecology and Environmental Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, China. Dr. Mirza’s research interests include the use of eco-friendly approaches to manage biotic and abiotic stress, soil microbial ecology, phytobiomes, metagenomics, metatranscriptomics, metaproteomics, and metabolomics. He has published 7 book chapters with Elsevier and Springer Nature. He has published 35 research and review articles in international peer-reviewed journals, including Current Opinion in Green and Sustainable Chemistry, Microbiology Spectrum, Plants, Horticulturae, Journal of King Saud University-Science, Stress Biology, International Journal of Tropical Insect Science, Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences, and the Journal of Environmental Management. Dr. Mirza is a reviewer for journals including the Journal of Environmental Management, Phytopathology Research, Frontiers in Microbiology, Journal of Soil Science and Plant Nutrition and SN Applied Sciences, Soil Systems, and Agronomy.