Antifungal and larvicidal activities of two acyclic monoterpenes; citral and geraniol against phytopathogenic fungi and insects

Abstract

Citral and geraniol are dominating constituents of lemon and rose scented essential oils of Cymbopogon spp. Here, we report their antifungal activity against some pathogenic fungi Drechslera oryzae, Fusarium oxysporum, Rhizoctonia solani and Sclerotium rolfsii and larvicidal activity against two insects Helicoverpa armigera and Spodoptera litura. Results revealed that both citral and geraniol exhibited strong fungicidal effects at concentrations > 0.2 µL mL⁻¹. Citral was found most active against F. oxysporum and S. rolfsii while geraniol against S. rolfsii at 0.2–2 µL mL⁻¹. Nanoemulsions of citral and geraniol caused 91 and 94% larval mortality of H. armigera and S. litura, respectively, at 1% concentration. Hence, the study revealed potential antifungal and larvicidal activities of citral and geraniol, which can be implicated in formulation of biocides for effective control of phytopathogenic fungal and insects.

Keywords:

• Antifungal
• citral
• geraniol
• larvicidal
• phytopathogenic fungi
• radial growth inhibition

Disclosure statement

The authors claim that there is no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

The author is grateful to founder President Dr. Ashok K. Chauhan and Chancellor Mr. Atul Chauhan, Amity University Uttar Pradesh, Noida, India for providing necessary support and facilities. Financial support from DST-SERB in terms of National Post-Doctoral Fellowship to Dr. Gurminder Kaur is duly acknowledged.