In vitro antifungal activity and chemical composition of Warionia saharae essential oil against 3 apple phytopathogenic fungi

Essential oil of aerial parts of Warionia saharae was obtained by hydrodistillation and analyzed by GC and GC-MS. Thirty-nine compounds were identified, accounting for 93.2% of the total oil. β-Eudesmol (34.9%), nerolidol-E (23%), and linalool (15.2%) were the most abundant components. The antifungal activity of the W. saharae oil was tested by poisoned food (PF) technique and the volatile activity (VA) assay against 3 phytopathogenic causing the deterioration for apple. The results indicated that the W. saharae oil inhibited significantly the mycelial growth of all strains tested (p<0.05). The minimum inhibitory concentration against Alternaria sp. was 2 μL/mL air in VA assay, whereas >2 μL/mL in PF technique for all strains. Fungal spore production was completely inhibited at 1 μL/mL air for Alternaria sp. and at 2 μL/mL air for Penicillium expansum and Rhizopus stolonifer.