Antifungal activity of essential oil from the fruits of Ammodaucus leucotrichus Coss. & Dur., in liquid and vapour phase against postharvest phytopathogenic fungi in apples

Article history: Received on: 23/12/2015 Revised on: 25/01/2016 Accepted on: 10/02/2016 Available online: 28/05/2016 The aim of this study was to evaluate the antifungal activity of essential oil (EO) from Ammodaucus leucotrichus fruits against three phytopathogenic fungi causing the deterioration for apples, including Botrytis cinerea, Penicillium expansum and Rhizopus stolonifer by using the poisoned food (PF) and the volatile activity (VA) methods. The antifungal test results indicated that the EO displayed significant potential of antifungal activity against the tested phytopathogenic fungi (p<0.05). In PF technique, the MICs (minimums inhibitory concentrations) were 0.5 μL/mL for B. cinerea and P. expansum and 1 μL/mL for R. stolonifer. Whereas, in VA assay, the complete inhibition of the mycelial growth of B. cinerea and P. expansum was observed at MIC= 0.125 μL/mL air, and that of R. stolonifer was observed at MIC = 0.25 μL/mL air. The overall results suggest that A. leucotrichus essential oil have a potential as antifungal preservatives for the control of postharvest diseases of apple.