ANTIFUNGAL ACTIVITY OF PLANT EXTRACTS FROM THE NORTH OF ARGENTINA AGAINST Aspergillus section flavi STRAINS

GOMEZ, A DE LOS A.; VATTUONE, M.A.; SAMPIETRO, D.A.

Tucuman

Congreso; THIRD JOINT MEETING OF THE BIOLOGY SOCIETIES OF ARGENTINA; 2015

Sociedades Argentinas de Biologia

At present, different chemical preservatives are used to combat the growth of food contaminating toxigenic fungal strains, The growing interest in replacing them by natural products less hazardous to human health has led to the search for secondary plant metabolites able to fulfill this role. The objective os this work was to determine the antifungal effect of different plant extracts from the north of Argentina against Aspergillus section flavi strains. Aerial parts of Prosopis ruscifolia Griseb, Bidens pilosa L. Cercidium australe Jonhst and Phorandendron liga Eachler, collected in Tucuman and Santiago del Estero, were dried and crushed to conduct sequential extraction with solvents with increasing polarity (hexane, ethyl acetate , dichloromethane and methanol). Antifungal activities of these extracts against six A. section flavi strains were analyzed by spot planting bioautography in Silica gel 60 F254. Also, a phytochemical analysis of biologically active extracts was performed in thin layer chromatography with Silica gel 60 F254 and the bands obtained were identified with specific chemical groups for different developers, as a first approximation to identifying the biologically active substances. Antifungal activity was verified in methanol extracts of P. ruscifolia Griseb, dichloromethanic, ethylacetate extract of B. pilosa L. and hexane and dichloromethanic extract of C. australe Jonhst, the most effective being the methanol extract of P.ruscifolia Griseb in which all strains tested showed sensitivity. The study of these extracts will continue in order to identify, isolate and purify these antifungal compounds.