Fungicidal properties of ginger (Zingiber officinale) essential oils against Phytophthora colocasiae

Muhammad Talib Kalhoro,Fukai Wang,Tianhong Chen,Yahya Faqir,Ghulam Mujtaba Kalhoro,Farhan Nabi,Hong Zhang

doi:10.1038/s41598-022-06321-5

Muhammad Talib Kalhoro, Fukai Wang + Show 5 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-06321-5

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Abstract

Recently, plant essential oils (EOs) have attracted special attention in plant disease control and food preservation. Since ancient times, essential oils extracted from plants have exhibited many biological characteristics, especially antimicrobial properties. Recent studies have described the potentials of EOs and derivatives to inhibit the growth and reproduction of microorganisms, mainly in response of overwhelming concerns of consumers about food safety. In the context of returning to nature, with the advancement of science and technology and improved living standards, people have begun to seek solutions for food hygiene without chemical additives. Therefore, biological pesticides and plant-oriented chemicals have received special attention from scientists because they are environmentally friendly and nonhazardous, sustainable, and effective alternatives against many noxious phytopathogens. Present study is intended to appraise the fungicidal properties of ginger EOs to combat leaf blight disease of taro, which threatens global taro production. Farmers often hinge on extremely toxic synthetic fungicides to manage diseases, but the residual effects and resistance of chemicals are unavoidable. The microwave-assisted hydrodistillation method was used for ginger EOs extraction and an FTIR (ATR) spectrometer was used to evaluate their chemical composition and citral was identified as most abundant compound (89.05%) in oil. The pathogen isolated from lesions of diseased taro plants was identified as Phytophthora colocasiae and used as test fungus in the present study. Ginger EO was evaluated in-vitro for antifungal properties against mycelium growth, sporangium production, zoospore germination, leaf, and corm necrosis inhibition. Repeated experiments have shown that the concentration of ginger essential oil (1250 ppm) proved to be the lowest dose to obtain 100% inhibition of fungal growth and spore germination, sporangia formation and leaf necrosis assessment. These results are derived from this fungal species and a hypothesis that involves further research on other plant pathogens to demonstrate the overall potency of essential oils. This study references the easy, economic, and environmental management and control of plant diseases using essential oils and byproducts.

Highlights

Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) is identified as an ancient spice plant often used by traditional Chinese medicines, Ayurvedic, eastern, Tibb-Unani, and herbal drugs
Taro itself is susceptible to various plant diseases and pests; among them, leaf blight of taro caused by the oomycete Phytophthora colocasiae is most destructive, causing huge yield losses around the world
The essential oil was extracted from ginger rhizomes by the MAHD method with a yield of 2.5%

Summary

Introduction

Ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe) is identified as an ancient spice plant often used by traditional Chinese medicines, Ayurvedic, eastern, Tibb-Unani, and herbal drugs. It belongs to the family Zingiberaceae and is generally consumed as fresh and/or dried seasoning for cooking[1]. The cell walls of zoospores are usually expanded to develop thick-walled spores (chlamydospores) that undergo dormant conditions to promote survivability in soil and corms[23] Due to this phenomenon, Taro disease has become the key pathogen, and continuous cultivation promotes pathogenic biomass accumulation within the soil

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