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BACKGROUND: Fresh ginseng is typically accompanied by soil after harvest, leading to contamination with harmful fungi during storage and distribution. In this study, we investigated the incidence of fungal contamination in fresh ginseng (5–6 years old) purchased from 22 different stores in Geumsan, Korea. RESULTS: The incidence of fungal contamination in the samples was 67.4–111.5%. Fusarium solani was the most abundant species in the head (38.5%) and fine root (19.3%) parts of the ginseng samples, whereas F. oxysporum was the most abundant in the main root (22.0%) part. We isolated Aspergillus, Fusarium and Penicillium spp. (total number of isolates: 395) from the ginseng samples, and 138 isolates were identified using phylogenetic analysis. Polymerase chain reaction‐based screening of 65 mycotoxin‐producing species revealed that two P. expansum isolates were positive for citrinin and/or patulin, and five F. oxysporum isolates were positive for fumonisin biosynthesis gene. One P. expansum isolate produced 738.0 mg kg−1 patulin, and the other produced 10.4 mg kg−1 citrinin and 12.0 mg kg−1 patulin on potato dextrose agar (PDA) medium. Among the 47 representative F. oxysporum isolates, 43 (91.5%) produced beauvericin (0.1–15.4 mg kg−1) and four of them (8.5%) produced enniatin B and enniatin B1 (0.1–1.8 mg kg−1) as well. However, none of these toxins was detected in fresh ginseng samples. CONCLUSION: Fusarium solani and F. oxysporum were the most abundant species in fresh ginseng samples. Most F. oxysporum (43) and P. expansum (2) strains isolated from fresh ginseng produced beauvericin and enniatins (B and B1), and patulin or citrinin, respectively, on PDA medium. This is the first report of the mycotoxigenic potential of P. expansum and F. oxysporum strains isolated from fresh ginseng. © 2024 Society of Chemical Industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Waltheria indica exhibited strong nematocidal activity against Meloidogyne incognita, a causal agent of root‐knot nematode disease. This study aimed to characterize the nematocidal metabolites and to evaluate the efficacy of the formulated extract of W. indica in the biological control of M. incognita under both pot and field conditions. RESULTS: Three 4‐quinolone alkaloids, 5′‐methoxywaltherione A, waltherione A and waltherione C, were isolated and characterized as nematocidal metabolites. 5′‐Methoxywaltherione A and waltherione A caused high mortality in juveniles of Meloidogyne arenaria, Meloidogyne hapla, M. incognita and Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, whereas waltherione C exhibited significant nematocidal activity against only root‐knot nematodes. In pot experiments, application of a wettable powder‐type formulation of the ethyl acetate extract of W. indica (W. indica WP20) at 26.7, 53.4 and 106.8 mg a.i. kg−1 soil significantly reduced the formation of galls and egg masses on the roots of tomato plants in a dose‐dependent manner. In addition, application of 20 mg a.i. per plant W. indica WP20 effectively reduced gall formation on the roots of melon plants and population density of nematode in soil compared with untreated control under field conditions. CONCLUSION: W. indica can be used as an effective botanical nematicide in the eco‐friendly control of root‐knot nematode disease. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND The endolichenic fungus Xylaria grammica KCTC 13121BP showed strong nematicidal activity against Meloidogyne incognita. This study aimed to identify the nematicidal metabolites and to evaluate the efficacy of the strain as a biocontrol agent under pot and field conditions. RESULTS Bioassay-guided fractionation and instrumental analyses led to grammicin being identified as the nematicidal metabolite. Because patulin is a mycotoxic isomer of grammicin and is known to have strong antibacterial and cytotoxic activities, several biological activities of the two compounds were compared. Grammicin showed strong second-stage juvenile killing and egg-hatching inhibitory effects, with a 50% effective concentration at 72 h (EC50/72 h) of 15.9 µg/mL and a 50% effective concentration at 14 days (EC50/14 days) of 5.87 µg/mL, respectively, whereas patulin was virtually inactive in both respects. Patulin was strongly active toward various phytopathogenic bacteria in vitro, whereas grammicin was weakly so. Patulin at the concentration range of 0.1-10 µg/mL also showed dose-dependent cytotoxicity toward the human first-trimester trophoblast cell line SW.71, whereas grammicin was not toxic toward this cell line. In pot and field experiments, a wettable powder-type formulation and fermentation broth filtrate of X. grammica KCTC 13121BP effectively suppressed the development of root-knot nematode disease on tomato and melon plants. CONCLUSION The results suggest that X. grammica and grammicin may have potential applications for control of root-knot nematode disease of various crops. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]