What does the published scientific research say about Aureobasidium pullulans?

Eight PubMed records index Aureobasidium pullulans in plant-input contexts, covering biocontrol applications across cherry, strawberry, grapevine, and Korean fir. The research centers on suppression of fungal pathogens—primarily Botrytis cinerea gray mold and Monilinia species brown rot—and positions A. pullulans among the yeast-like fungi that have reached commercial biocontrol registration.

Reported in peer-reviewed research, pre-harvest field applications of A. pullulans reduced post-harvest Monilinia laxa rot on cherry by 30–60% under orchard conditions. Bee-vectored delivery to strawberry flowers is cited in the literature as cutting Botrytis gray mold incidence by 45% and doubling shelf life. Grapevine trials found biocontrol efficacy strongest at 25°C, with population size temperature- and substrate-dependent. One study reported rhizosphere microbiome shifts—including reduced Fusarium and elevated beneficial taxa—associated with A. pullulans treatment in drought-stressed Korean fir seedlings.

The literature is not uniformly favorable: one phosphate-solubilization study found the tested A. pullulans isolate showed weak solubilizing capacity and no measurable plant growth promotion. The same body of research describes the species as presenting 'limited biosafety concerns' relative to other biocontrol candidates, though no formal biosafety risk group assignment appears in any of the eight indexed records.