Antifungal Activities Of Essential Oils Of Cymbopogon Citratus, Ocimum Gratissimum And Eucalyptus Globulus Against Botrytis Cinerea, Penicillium Expansum And Potential Application As Biocontrol Agents During Fruit Cultivation

The present work aims to study the effectiveness of selected medicinal and food plant extracts (EtOH, DCM) including essential oils (Eucalyptus globulus, Ocimum gratissimum, Cymbopogon citractus) on the mycellian growth of toxinogenic moulds responsible for fruit alteration. Antifungal tests were carried out with the different extracts to assess their potential antimicrobial activities against Botrytis cinerea and Penicillium expansum responsible for fruits deterioration in several regions of the world.In vitro antifungal tests have shown that essential oils have pronounced antifungal activities at low concentrations of 0.3µl/ml, 1.3µl/ml and 5µl/ml respectively for Cymbopogon citractus, Eucalyptus glogulus and Occimum gratissimum, while non-volatile extracts exert growth inhibition of 50% on average on Botrytis cinerea. This study suggests use as biocontrol agents for plant pests during fruit cultivation that plants present themselves as a promising alternative for the fight against toxinogenic fungi.