Issue in Honor of Prof. Atta-ur-Rahman ARKIVOC 2007 (vii) 116-145
the antifungal activity of Mexican oregano versus food-contaminant fungi. The oregano essential oil was inhibitory to all fungal strains tested, but there were differences in the extent of the effect. Although the antifungal effect of oregano is strongly established, there was a differential effect with the fungal strains studied. Another species from the genus Lippia, Lippia javanica (Burm. f.) Spreng, is widely distributed throughout South Africa, where it is used extensively in traditional herbal preparations. An infusion of the leaves is commonly used as a decongestant for colds and coughs. Recently, Viljoen et al.74 reported the antimicrobial activity of L. javanica leaf essential oil against some fungi. The essential oils of two members of the Verbenaceae family, Aloysia triphylla (Ort.) H.B.K. and Aloysia polystachya (Gris.) Mol., were also active towards Fusarium verticillioides.75
In the Rutaceae family, the essential oil extracted from the epicarp of Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck exhibited absolute fungitoxicity against ten post-harvest pathogens.76 The chemical composition and antifungal activity of the essential oil of Haplophyllum tuberculatum (Forsskal)
A. Juss (Rutaceae) was also analysed.77 The oil affected the mycelial growth of Curvularia lunata and Fusarium oxysporium in a dose-dependent manner, but had no effect on the germination of their spores. Thirty compounds, constituting about 99.7% of the total oil, were identified. The most abundant oil components were a- and ß-phellandrene, limonene (Figure 1), ß-ocimene, ß-caryophyllene and myrcene. The antifungal activity of the essential oils from several aromatic species from the Lauraceae family, Aniba rosaedora Ducke, Laurus nobilis L., Sassafras albidum (Nutt.) Nees and Cinnamomum zeylanicum Blume were investigated against seventeen micromycetes.78 Among the fungal species tested were food poisoning and food spoilage fungi, and plant and animal pathogens. Linalool was the main component in the essential oil of A. rosaedora, while 1,8-cineole was dominant in L. nobilis. Safrole was the major component in S. albidum essential oil, and the main component of the oil of C. zeylanicum was trans-cinnamaldehyde. The essential oil of C. zeylanicum showed the strongest antifungal activity. Another antifungal Cinnamomum species is Cinnamomum osmophloeum Kaneh, a hardwood species indigenous to Taiwan, which has significant antifungal activity against wood decay fungi.79
From the Cupressaceae family, Calocedrus formosana Florin is an endemic tree species in Taiwan. Its timber is recognised for its natural resistance to decay. Cheng et al.80 investigated the antifungal activity of its essential oil. Leaf oil constituents displayed activity against four fungi: Lenzites betulina, Pycnoporus coccineus, Trametes versicolor and Laetiporus sulphurous. Two compounds, a-cadinol and muurolol, exhibited the strongest antifungal activity. The antifungal activity of the essential oil from another coniferous tree, Chamaecyparis obtusa (Siebold & Zucc.) Siebold & Zucc. ex Endl. was also reported.81 The oil had antifungal effects and the main component was bornyl acetate. Examples of other antifungal essential oils from the Cupressaceae family also included Juniperus comunis L. essential oil which was active against the dermatophyte Aspergillus and Candida strains.82
Reports on the antifungal activity of essential oils from aromatic medicinal plants belonging to other botanical families have also been found in the literature. In an attempt to
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