Reactive oxygen species mediated-antifungal activity of cinnamon bark (Cinnamomum verum) and lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) essential oils and their constituents against two phytopathogenic fungi

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Highlights

  • Cinnamon bark and lemongrass essential oil exhibited fumigant antifungal activity.

  • trans-cinnamaldehyde, neral and geranial showed potent fumigant antifungal activity.

  • trans-cinnamaldehyde and geranial were identified as major contributors to activity.

  • trans-cinnamaldehyde, neral and geranial generated reactive oxygen species.

Abstract

To find new and safe type of control agents against phytopathogenic fungi, the fumigant antifungal activity of 10 plant essential oils and constituents identified in cinnamon bark (Cinnamomum verum) and lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) essential oils was investigated against two phytopathogenic fungi, Raffaelea quercus-mongolicae and Rhizoctonia solani. Among plant essential oils, cinnamon bark and lemongrass essential oils showed 100% inhibition of R. quercus-mongolicae and R. solani at 5 mg/paper disc, respectively. Among test constituents, salicylaldehyde, eugenol, and hydrocinnamaldehyde showed 100% inhibition of growth of R. quercus-mongolicae at 2.5 mg/paper disc. Neral, geraniol, geranial, trans-cinnamaldehyde, methyl cinnamate, isoeugenol, and methyl eugenol exhibited >80% inhibition of growth of R. quercus-mongolicae at 2.5 mg/paper disc. Neral, geranial, trans-cinnamaldehyde, hydrocinnamaldehyde, and salicylaldehyde showed 100% inhibition of growth of R. solani at 2.5 mg/paper disc. A fumigant antifungal bioassay of artificial blends of the constituents identified in cinnamon bark and lemongrass essential oils indicated that trans-cinnamaldehyde and geranial were major contributors to the fumigant antifungal activity of the artificial blend. Confocal laser scanning microscopy images of fungi treated with cinnamon bark and lemongrass essential oils, trans-cinnamaldehyde, neral, and geranial revealed the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and cell membrane disruption.

Introduction

Oak wilt disease caused by Raffaelea quercus-mongolicae K.H. Kim, Y.J. Choi, & H.D. Shin was first reported in Sungnam city, Gyeonggi Province, Republic of Korea in 2014, and has since killed many oak trees in several areas of the Korean peninsula (Kim et al., 2009b). Several oak tree species including Quercus mongolica Fisch. ex Ledeb., Quercus acutissima Carruth., Quercus aliena Blume, Quercus dentata Thunb., Quercus serrata Thunb., and Quercus variabilis Blume are host trees of R. quercus-mongolicae. Ambrosia beetles, Platypus koryoensis (Murayama), transfer R. quercus-mongolicae when they construct galleries for breeding (Park et al., 2016; Kim et al., 2009a). Phytopthora, Fusarium, Rhizoctonia, and Pythium are genera of fungal pathogens that cause damping-off (Lee, 2018). Rhizoctonia solani Kuhn in particular has been reported to cause serious damage to agricultural crops and seedlings in nursery gardens around the world (StĘpniewska-Jarosz et al., 2006; Kim et al., 2019b).

Commercial fungicides or fumigants are widely used to control phytopathogenic fungi in Korea (Kim et al., 2009b; Park et al., 2016; Kim et al., 2019b). However, persistent use of synthetic fungicides and fumigants can result in toxicity to humans and animals, residues, environmental pollution, and evolution of resistant strains (Kim et al., 2019a). Plant essential oils are considered by some researchers to be novel, safe alternatives to synthetic fungicides and fumigants because of their wide range of bioactivities (Isman, 2000; Bakkali et al., 2008).

In this study, we investigated the fumigant antifungal activities of 10 plant essential oils and constituents derived from cinnamon bark and lemongrass essential oils against R. quercus-mongolicae and R. solani. To determine the major contributors to the fumigant antifungal activities of cinnamon bark and lemongrass essential oils, fumigant antifungal bioassays of artificial blends were also conducted. Intercellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation and cell membrane integrity of the phytopathogenic fungi treated with cinnamon bark and lemongrass essential oils and their active compounds were determined by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM).

Section snippets

Fungal strains and culture condition

Phytopathogenic fungi R. quercus-mongolicae and R. solani were supplied by the National Institute of Forest Science (NIFS, Seoul, Republic of Korea) and the Korea Culture Center of Microorganisms (KCCM, Seoul, Republic of Korea), respectively. Cultures were routinely maintained on potato dextrose agar (PDA) (Difco, Il, USA) at 25 °C in the dark.

Plant essential oils and chemicals

We tested a total of 10 plant essential oils belonging to five familes: Ericaceae (wintergreen), Lamiaceae (lavandin and blue mountain sage), Lauraceae

Fumigant antifungal activities of plant essential oils

Fumigant antifungal activities of 10 plant essential oils against two phytopathogenic fungi are shown in Table 2, Table 3. Among test oils, cinnamon bark and lemongrass essential oils showed 100% inhibition of R. quercus-mongolicae at 5 mg/paper disc. Only cinnamon bark, lemongrass, and wintergreen essential oils exhibited >50% inhibition of R. quercus-mongolicae growth at 2.5 mg/paper disc. Cinnamon bark and lemongrass essential oils showed 100% inhibition of R. solani growth at 2.5 mg/paper

Conclusions

To find new and safe type of control agents against phytopathogenic fungi, we investigated the fumigant antifungal activities of 10 plant essential oils against R. quercus-mongolicae and R. solani. Among plant essential oils, cinnamon bark (Cinnamomum verum) and lemongrass (Cymbopogon citratus) showed the most potent fumigant antifungal activity against the two phytopathogenic fungi. Biopesticide based on cinnamon oil (Cinnamite) has been registered in the USA for the control of powdery mildew,

Funding

This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by Korea government (MSIT) (NRF-2018R1D1A1B07047458), and the Korea Institute of Planning and Evaluation for Technology in Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (IPET) through the Agro-Bio Industry Technology Development Program, funded by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food, and Rural Affairs (MAFRA) (grant number 316030_3).

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    These authors contributed equally to this work.

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