Inhibitory effect of Irvingia fruit waste extracts on some postharvest spoilage fungi

Abstract

The importance of fungi in plant food production and storage calls for urgent intervention on agro-allied practitioners. Although applied chemical pesticides are one of the effective and fast means for controlling fungal postharvest diseases, their continual use is increasing becoming worrisome. Attention, in recent times has been directed at exploring the potentials of botanicals (plant extracts) as alternatives to synthetic chemicals. Hence in this research the inhibitory effect of Irvingia fruit waste extract on three postharvest spoilage fungi (Aspergillus, Fusarium and Mucor species) was studied. Results showed that  although ketoconazole (a fungicide) at 5mg/ml significantly (P ? 0.05) inhibited all test fungi (mean percentage growth inhibition, 95.26%) more than Irvingia fruit waste extract, the latter at 0.4% and 1% concentrations also substantially inhibited all three test fungi (mean percentage growth inhibition being 53.26% and 72.45%, respectively). Findings further showed that the plant extracts were more active against Aspergillus and Mucor species compared to Fusarium species irrespective of concentration of plant extract.  Irvingia fruit waste extracts would potentially serve as better alternatives or complementary to synthetic fungicides in the control of postharvest spoilage fungi.

Keywords Ketoconazole, Irvingia gabonensis, Aspergillus, Fusarium, Mucor species, fungicide, Postharvest spoilage fungi