Plant oil concentrations and lipid constituents shape temperature-dependent antifungal activity against Lasiodiplodia laeliocattleyae in cacao
Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the protective efficacy of castor (Ricinus communis L.), neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss.), and physic nut (Jatropha curcas L.) oils at concentrations of 0, 10, 20, 30, and 40% against the phytopathogen Lasiodiplodia laeliocattleyae (Sibilia) A. Alves. The oils were evaluated in vitro for their inhibitory effect on pathogen growth, using the synthetic fungicide iprodione as a positive control, and in vivo for their protective effect on cacao pods (CCN-51) artificially inoculated with the pathogen under controlled conditions. A completely randomized design was used in both experiments, and data were analyzed using two-way ANOVA and multivariate analysis. The oils exhibited distinct lipid profiles. Neem oil was characterized by higher concentrations of α-linolenic, γ-linolenic, linoleic, arachidic, palmitic, and stearic acids, while castor and physic nut oils showed contrasting compositions dominated by eucalyptol, elaidic acid, linolelaidic acid, oleic acid, and petroselinic acid. In vitro, highly significant differences were observed among treatments, days, and their interactions at both 25 and 28 °C (P < 0.0001). At 25 °C, vegetable oils increased mycelial inhibition by approximately 86–129% relative to their respective negative controls but remained 38–50% less effective than Iprodione. At 28 °C, the 10% concentration was the most effective oil treatment, approximately doubling the inhibition obtained with the fungicidal control and markedly exceeding the negative control and higher oil concentrations (P < 0.0001). In vivo, none of the vegetable oils consistently reduced pod rot severity relative to the negative control, whereas Iprodione reduced the affected area by approximately 77–82%, depending on temperature (P < 0.0001). Overall, the vegetable oils showed concentration- and temperature-dependent antifungal activity in vitro, particularly at 10%, but this activity did not translate into consistent disease suppression in vivo, where Iprodione remained the most effective treatment.
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BibTeX
@article{garcesfiallos2026plant,
title = {{Plant oil concentrations and lipid constituents shape temperature-dependent antifungal activity against Lasiodiplodia laeliocattleyae in cacao}},
author = {Felipe Rafael Garcés-Fiallos and Evelyn Tatiana Ortiz-Chila and Suanny Nayeli Torres-Moreira and Sylvia Karina Delgado-Piedra and Miguel Ángel Espín-Ollagata and Jhonathan Paúl Gamboa-Trujillo and Ángel Benítez and James Calva and Víctor Alfonso Montes-Zambrano and Giovanna De Ioanni and Fernando David Sánchez-Mora and Freddy Zambrano-Gavilánez and Alex Alberto Dueñas-Rivadeneira and Efrén Santos-Ordóñez},
journal = {Frontiers in Plant Science},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.3389/fpls.2026.1915410},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1915410},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Plant oil concentrations and lipid constituents shape temperature-dependent antifungal activity against Lasiodiplodia laeliocattleyae in cacao
AU - Felipe Rafael Garcés-Fiallos
AU - Evelyn Tatiana Ortiz-Chila
AU - Suanny Nayeli Torres-Moreira
AU - Sylvia Karina Delgado-Piedra
AU - Miguel Ángel Espín-Ollagata
AU - Jhonathan Paúl Gamboa-Trujillo
AU - Ángel Benítez
AU - James Calva
AU - Víctor Alfonso Montes-Zambrano
AU - Giovanna De Ioanni
AU - Fernando David Sánchez-Mora
AU - Freddy Zambrano-Gavilánez
AU - Alex Alberto Dueñas-Rivadeneira
AU - Efrén Santos-Ordóñez
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/09
JO - Frontiers in Plant Science
DO - 10.3389/fpls.2026.1915410
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpls.2026.1915410
AB - The aim of this study was to evaluate the protective efficacy of castor (Ricinus communis L.), neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss.), and physic nut (Jatropha curcas L.) oils at concentrations of 0, 10, 20, 30, and 40% against the phytopathogen Lasiodiplodia laeliocattleyae (Sibilia) A. Alves. The oils were evaluated in vitro for their inhibitory effect on pathogen growth, using the synthetic fungicide iprodione as a positive control, and in vivo for their protective effect on cacao pods (CCN-51) artificially inoculated with the pathogen under controlled conditions. A completely randomized design was used in both experiments, and data were analyzed using two-way ANOVA and multivariate analysis. The oils exhibited distinct lipid profiles. Neem oil was characterized by higher concentrations of α-linolenic, γ-linolenic, linoleic, arachidic, palmitic, and stearic acids, while castor and physic nut oils showed contrasting compositions dominated by eucalyptol, elaidic acid, linolelaidic acid, oleic acid, and petroselinic acid. In vitro, highly significant differences were observed among treatments, days, and their interactions at both 25 and 28 °C (P < 0.0001). At 25 °C, vegetable oils increased mycelial inhibition by approximately 86–129% relative to their respective negative controls but remained 38–50% less effective than Iprodione. At 28 °C, the 10% concentration was the most effective oil treatment, approximately doubling the inhibition obtained with the fungicidal control and markedly exceeding the negative control and higher oil concentrations (P < 0.0001). In vivo, none of the vegetable oils consistently reduced pod rot severity relative to the negative control, whereas Iprodione reduced the affected area by approximately 77–82%, depending on temperature (P < 0.0001). Overall, the vegetable oils showed concentration- and temperature-dependent antifungal activity in vitro, particularly at 10%, but this activity did not translate into consistent disease suppression in vivo, where Iprodione remained the most effective treatment.
SN - 1664-462X
ER -