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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol.
Sec. Fungal Pathogenesis
Volume 14 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2024.1451287
This article is part of the Research Topic The Bodyguards to The Rescue: Understanding The Molecular and Immunological Mechanisms Involved in Host-Insect Pathogenic Microbe Interactions View all articles

Chemical composition and antifungal activity of Capsicum pepper aqueous extracts against plant pathogens and food spoilage fungi

Provisionally accepted
Marcela Sepúlveda Marcela Sepúlveda 1Jéssica Costa Jéssica Costa 2Yasna Cayún Yasna Cayún 3Víctor Gallardo Víctor Gallardo 1,4Elsa Barría Elsa Barría 3Marcia Regina Von Zeska Kress Marcia Regina Von Zeska Kress 5Pablo Cornejo Pablo Cornejo 6Glaucia R. Caruso Glaucia R. Caruso 5Cledir Santos Cledir Santos 3*
  • 1 Doctorado en Ciencias de Recursos Naturales, Universidad de la Frontera, Temuco, Chile
  • 2 Institute of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Amazonas, Manaus, Brazil
  • 3 Department of Chemical Sciences and Natural Resources, Faculty of Engineering and Sciences, University of La Frontera, Temuco, Araucania, Chile
  • 4 Federal Technological University of Paraná, Curitiba, Brazil
  • 5 Department of Clinical Analyses, Toxicology and Food Science, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, São Paulo, Brazil
  • 6 Escuela de Agronomía, Facultad de Ciencias Agronómicas y de los Alimentos, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Quillota, Chile

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Capsicum pepper is a rich source of phytochemical compounds such as capsaicinoids, phenols, flavonoids, and so forth. Due to their antimicrobial and antioxidant potential all of these compounds have been assessed and used for both human and plant health benefits. Herein, three fresh varieties of Capsicum annuum (Cacho de Cabra, Bell pepper, and Hungarian Wax varieties) and one fresh and ripe variety of C. baccatum (Cristal) were evaluated. Capsaicin, dihydrocapsaicin, nordihydrocapsaicin and the phenolic content of Capsicum spp. extracts were characterised. The antifungal potential of capsaicinoids and antioxidant activities, and the ecotoxicity of each Capsicum spp. extract, using the model Galleria mellonella, were also evaluated. Phytochemical analyses showed that the Cristal and Hungarian Wax varieties presented the highest amount of capsaicin, dihydrocapsaicin, and nordihydrocapsaicin; while Bell Pepper had the highest phenol content and antioxidant activity. Capsaicinoids' standards and Capsicum spp. extracts showed fungistatic activity against the fungal strains assessed. For the fungal strains assessed, the fungistatic activities of capsaicinoids' standards were higher than those observed in Capsicum spp. extracts. The Hungarian Wax extracts inhibited slightly the growth of Aspergillus niger MUM05.11 and Fusarium oxysporum MUM16.143. Similarly, A. niger, F. oxysporum, Rhizopus arrhizus MUM16.05 and Alternaria sp. UFRO17.178 had their growth retarded by the use of Cacho de Cabra and Cristal extracts. Noticeable changes were observed in the fungal strains' morphologies, such as the presence of fragile fungal structures, pigmentation loss, variation in the reproductive structures size and the conidia number. Capsicum extracts weaken the growth of fungi, indicating their fungistatic potential. Considering the fungistatic potential and nonecotoxicity of these extracts, it is possible to suggest their use as a tool for pest management in the agri-food sector, controlling the growth and reproduction of fungi without posing a risk to non-target biodiversity.

    Keywords: biofungicides1, capsaicinoids2, chilli3, Food safety4, phenolic compounds5, red pepper6, secondary metabolites7

    Received: 18 Jun 2024; Accepted: 27 Aug 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Sepúlveda, Costa, Cayún, Gallardo, Barría, Von Zeska Kress, Cornejo, Caruso and Santos. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Cledir Santos, Department of Chemical Sciences and Natural Resources, Faculty of Engineering and Sciences, University of La Frontera, Temuco, 4811230, Araucania, Chile

    Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.