Vol. 12, Issue 1 (2023)

Author(s):
Aathira S Kumar, Kamla Malik, Shikha Mehta, Monika Kayasth, Meena Sindhu and Poonam Ranga

Abstract:
In recent years, chitosan and its derivatives have been seeking more attention in sustainable agriculture and food safety due to its unique physiochemical and biological characteristics. Therefore, the study aims to evaluate the antimicrobial efficacy of fungal chitosan against plant pathogenic and food spoilage micro-organisms including Gram-positive, Gram-negative bacteria and fungi. The antimicrobial activity of chitosan extracted from Aspergillus flavus strain AF2118 in inhibiting the growth of Staphylococcus aureus VTCCBAA20, Escherichia coli VTCCBAA129, Pseudomonas aeruginosa VTCCBAA2 and Bacillus cereus VTCCBAA443 were evaluated. Fungal chitosan was effective against E. coli and P. aeruginosa @ 1000 ppm which exhibits prominent zone of inhibition of 8.00 and 6.33 mm, respectively. The fungal chitosan was also effective in inhibiting the growth of Gram positive bacteria namely, S. aureus and B. cereus @ 1000 ppm with a maximum clearance zone of 5.33 mm and 2.66 mm, respectively. Chitosan at a concentration of 1000ppm inhibited the growth of Xanthomonas campestris with a clearance zone of 1.33 mm. The highest percentage of inhibition of chitosan against fungal pathogens were observed at 3000 ppm for Rhizoctonia solani (90.73%) and Fusarium oxysporum (76.27%), respectively.