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Essential oils on the control of fungi causing postharvest diseases in mango

  • Food Microbiology - Research Paper
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Abstract

The use of fungicides in the postharvest treatment of mangoes has been widespread due to the incidence of pathogens, but awareness of the health risks arising from their use has increased, driving the search for more sustainable treatments. This study aimed to evaluate the activity of antifungal treatment of seven essential oils (EO) against four fungi that cause postharvest diseases in mangoes and define the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and chemical composition, analyzed by gas chromatography (GC-MS). The results showed that the EOs of oregano, rosemary pepper, cinnamon bark, and clove inhibited 100% of the mycelial growth of the studied pathogens, with MIC ranging from 250 to 2000 μL.L−1. The main compound found in oregano was carvacrol (69.1%); in rosemary and pepper oil, it was thymol (77.2%); cinnamaldehyde (85.1%) was the main constituent of cinnamon bark, and the eugenol (84.84%) in cloves. When evaluating the antifungal activity of these compounds, thymol and carvacrol showed greater inhibitory activity against fungi. Therefore, this study showed the great potential of oregano, clove, rosemary pepper, and cinnamon bark essential oil as alternative treatments to synthetic fungicides in controlling postharvest diseases in mangoes.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank the São Paulo Research Foundation (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo - FAPESP: 2018/25318-7) for the financial support. The authors also thank Mrs. Rosely dos Santos Nascimento and Miss Débora Renata Cassoli de Souza for their help in carrying out the experiments.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Embrapa Meio Ambiente, Raquel Ghini Environmental Microbiology Laboratory, Jaguariúna, SP, Brazil

    Elke Simoni Dias Vilela

  2. Embrapa Meio Ambiente, Research Sector, Jaguariúna, SP, Brazil

    Daniel Terao, Sonia Claudia do Nascimento de Queiroz & Aline de Holanda Nunes Maia

  3. UNICAMP, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Agricultural engineering, Campinas, SP, Brazil

    Adriane Maria da Silva & Juliana Aparecida Fracarolli

  4. UFSCar, Universidade Federal de São Carlos, Agroecology, Araras, SP, Brazil

    Caroline Dorta

  5. UFSCar, Universidade Federal de São Carlos, Biology, Araras, SP, Brazil

    Larissa da Silva dos Santos

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Vilela, E.S.D., Terao, D., do Nascimento de Queiroz, S.C. et al. Essential oils on the control of fungi causing postharvest diseases in mango. Braz J Microbiol 55, 689–698 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42770-023-01237-2

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