Evaluation of Antifungal Activity of Various Plant Latex against Selected Fungal Strains

Abstract

Abstract: Latex is a natural plant polymer and milky white fluid distributed throughout the plant body like leaves, stems, roots and fruits of all flowering plants and consists of proteins, alkaloids, starches, sugars, oils, tannins, resins and gums that coagulate on-air exposure. It is secreted by specialized plant cells called Laticifers. Plants exude latex in response to physical damage. The present study was carried out to assess the potential antifungal activity of latex of five different plants namely Plumeria rubra, Plumeria alba, Aloe vera, Calotropis procera and Calotropis gigantea against three different pathogenic strains of fungi. All five latexes were found to show good to moderated activity against all the three fungal strains, namely Trichoderma viride, Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus niger. The latex of each plant was tested in two volumes (i.e. 10µl & 20µl), and it was found that the antifungal activity was volume-dependent, and a significant difference was also observed in the case of different fungal strains. The antifungal activity of plant latexes was evaluated by Agar well diffusion method; results revealed that among all the five latexes, the fresh latex of Plumeria rubra (Vol: 10µl &20µl) showed excellent antifungal activity against Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus flavus, whereas fresh latex of Aloe vera (Vol: 10µl & 20µl) showed excellent antifungal activity against Trichoderma viride. The results of the current research imply that the antifungal activity of latex varies with the species of plants and the fungal strains used. The results therefore demonstrated that, the used five latexes effectively inhibited the growth of three tested fungi. Hence, these plant latexes are natural, ecofriendly and can be used as good candidates for the treatment of various fungal diseases. In further words, they can be used for therapy of antifungal-resistant fungi. Keywords: Antifungal activity, Proteins, Alkaloids, Tannins, Resins, Laticifers, Plumeria rubra, Plumeria alba, Aloe vera, Calotropis procera, Calotropis gigantea, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Trichoderma viride, Latex, Agar well diffusion.