Abstract

                                Several macrobasidiomycete fungi have potential biological propertiesnaturally to combat fungal diseases. F.oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici is a soilborne ascomycetous fungus, which causes disease in several vegetable crops.The present study aimed to explore the antifungal activity of VOCs producedby several macrobasidiomycete fungi against F. oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici.The VOCs emitted by macrobasidiomycete fungi were demonstrated bythe inverted sealed plate assay against the target pathogen. Among themushroom isolate tested in vitro, the VOCs exhibited from Coprinus cinereusinhibited 70 % mycelial growth of F. oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici, followed byGanoderma lucidum (60.28 %) and Lentinus edodes (35.28 %). In additionto inhibition of the pathogen, the headspace volatiles emitted by the effectiveisolate were trapped by Tenax column and subjected to GC-MS analysis. Atotal of 15 and 25 VOCs were identified from C. cinereus and G. lucidum,respectively. Among them, Alfa copaene showed a peak area percentage of7.82 (14.99 RT) in Coprinus cinereus. followed by 2 undecanone. Similarly,trichloromethane and 1- pentanol produced from G. lucidum, showed highrelative abundance of 71.5 per cent at 9.84 RT and 70.3 per cent at 2.69RT, respectively. The VOCs produced by macrobasidiomycete fungi couldpossess antimicrobial activities against the fungal pathogen. These volatilecompounds may be explored as a novel biocontrol agent against soil bornepathogens of vegetable crop.

Key words : Macrobasidiomycetes, C. cinereus, VOCs, antifungal activity