Volatiles from white-rot fungi for controlling plant pathogenic fungi

Fungal volatile secondary metabolites play important roles in mediating antagonistic and beneficial interactions among organisms. The effects of eight strains of white-rot fungi cultured on potato waste against the mycelial growth of Botrytis cinerea, Fusarium oxysporum and Mucor miehei were investigated using a bi-compartmented Petri dish assay. The chemical composition of volatile organic compounds released from the strain with the highest inhibitory effect was also investigated by headspace solid-phase microextraction and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis. Of the eight white-rot fungi evaluated, Anthracophyllum discolor. Sp4 showed a high inhibitory activity against M. miehei (approximately 76%) and B. cinerea (approximately 20%). F. oxysporum was inhibited to a lesser extent (approximately 10%) by A. discolor and T. versiscolor. The gas chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis showed nine main volatile compounds released from A. discolor Sp4, among them are the sesquiterpenes-bisabolene and bulnesene, and the chlorinated aromatic compounds 1,5-dichloro-2,3-dimethoxybenzene, 3,5-dichloro-4-methoxybenzaldehyde and 3-chloro-4-methoxybenzaldehyde. Some of which have been reported previously with antimicrobial activity. The antifungal activity and volatile profile of A. discolor have not been previously reported.