Synergistic antifungal mechanism of thymol and salicylic acid on Fusarium solani

Fusarium solani (CICC 2603) is one of the main postharvest spoilage strains of many fruits and vegetables. This research was to investigate the synergistic antifungal mechanism of thymol and salicylic acid (S-TSA) on F. solani. Morphological observation showed that the cell structure and morphology changed seriously after S-TSA treatment. Determination of F. solani stained cells with propidium iodide (PI) indicated that S-TSA damaged the integrity of cell membrane, and the contribution of salicylic acid was greater than that of thymol. Meanwhile, the increase in the absorbance of 260 nm and 280 nm demonstrated that S-TSA caused the leakage of cell contents severely, and the contribution of thymol was greater than that of salicylic acid. In addition, the decrease of ergosterol biosynthesis showed that S-TSA interfered with membrane function of F. solani. Mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) and enzymes activities of tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle experiments demonstrated that the mitochondrial function was seriously injured in F. solani. These results showed that S-TSA inhibited the activity of F. solani more effectively than thymol or salicylic acid alone, by disrupting integrity and function of the cell membrane, causing leakage of the cell contents, meanwhile inhibiting function of the mitochondria, ultimately resulting in cell death.

Automated summary

The study found that S-TSA more effectively inhibited the activity of F.solani by disrupting the integrity and function of the cell membrane, causing leakage of cell contents, while also inhibiting mitochondrial function.