Efficacy of salicylic acid and Catharanthus roseus leaf extract in mitigating pepper root rot caused by Fusarium solani

Lara Basheer Yasir, Nawres Al-Kuwaiti

Abstract


Fusarium solani is a destructive soil-borne pathogen causing root rot and significant losses in pepper production. The present study evaluated the efficacy of salicylic acid (SA), Catharanthus roseus leaf extract, and the fungicide Basten in suppressing F. solani, improving plant growth, and modulating the rhizospheric microbiome of pepper plants. Under in vitro conditions, all treatments significantly inhibited fungal growth compared with the untreated control. Basten exhibited the highest antifungal activity, reducing colony diameter to 2.1 cm with 75.29% inhibition, followed by SA at 200 ppm (55.29%) and C. roseus leaf extract at 200 mg L-1 (50.59%). In pot experiments, Basten, SA (200 ppm), and C. roseus extract (200 mg L-1) significantly improved seed germination (93.3%, 88.7%, and 86.0%, respectively) and reduced seedling mortality compared with the infected control. These treatments also enhanced plant height, fresh shoot and root weights, and leaf protein content under pathogen stress. SA at 200 ppm produced growth and physiological responses comparable to those of Basten. Furthermore, all treatments increased rhizospheric microbial populations, with SA (8.5 × 106 cfu g-1 soil) and Basten (8.9 × 106 cfu g-1 soil) showing the highest microbial densities. In conclusion, SA at 200 ppm effectively suppressed F. solani, enhanced plant growth and protein accumulation, and promoted beneficial rhizospheric microorganisms, performing similarly to the chemical fungicide. C. roseus leaf extract also showed promising bioactivity, highlighting its potential as an eco-friendly component of integrated pepper root rot management.


Keywords


Salicylic acid, Catharanthus roseus, Pepper root rot, Fusarium solani, Disease management

Full Text:

PDF

References


Al-aamel, A.N.A., Al-maliky, B.S., 2023. Control pepper Fusarium wilting by biocontrol agent Trichoderma harzianum and chelated iron Fe-EDDHA. Baghdad Science Journal 20, 2411–2141.

Al-Hamad, S.J., Khazal, J., Al-Kuwaiti, N., 2022. First molecular confirmation of the fungus Leveillula taurica causing powdery mildew disease on sweet pepper in Iraq. Archives of Phytopathology and Plant Protection 55, 1588-1591.

ASGIS, 2023. Agricultural Statistics, part 3. Iraqi Commission of statistics and GIS, Baghdad.

Baldani, V.L.D., Döbereiner, J., 1980. Host-plant specificity in the infection of cereals with Azospirillum spp. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 12, 433-439.

Bradford, M.M., 1976. A rapid and sensitive method for the quantitation of microgram quantities of protein utilizing the principle of protein-dye binding. Analytical Biochemistry 72, 248-254.

Cárdenas-Laverde, D., Barbosa-Cornelio, R., Coy-Barrera, E., 2021. Antifungal activity against Fusarium oxysporum of botanical end-products: An integration of chemical composition and antifungal activity datasets to identify antifungal bioactives. Plants 10, 2563.

Cucu, M.A., Choudhary, R., Trkulja, V., Garg, S., Matić, S., 2025. Utilizing environmentally friendly techniques for the sustainable control of plant pathogens: A review. Agronomy 15, 1551.

Domsch, K.H., Gams, W., Anderson, T.-H., 2007. Compendium of Soil Fungi, 2nd ed. HW-Verlag, Eching.

Ekrim, M.N., Abouharrous, H.A., Al-Sadek, M.G., 2025. Evaluation of the antifungal activity of aqueous plant extracts against Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lycopersici. Sirte University Scientific Journal 15, 69-73.

El-Kazzaz, M.K., Ghoneim, K.E., Agha, M.K.M., Helmy, A., Behiry, S.I., Abdelkhalek, A., Saleem, M.H., Al-Askar, A.A., Arishi, A.A., Elsharkawy, M.M., 2022. Suppression of pepper root rot and wilt diseases caused by Rhizoctonia solani and Fusarium oxysporum. Life 12, 587.

Engalycheva, I., Kozar, E., Frolova, S., Vetrova, S., Tikhonova, T., Dzhos, E., Engalychev, M., Chizhik, V., Martynov, V., Shingaliev, A., Dudnikova, K., Dudnikov, M., Kostanchuk, Y., 2024. Fusarium species causing pepper wilt in Russia: Molecular identification and pathogenicity. Microorganisms 12, 343.

Fang, X., Xie, Y., Yuan, Y., Long, Q., Zhang, L., Abid, G., Zhang, W., 2025. The role of salicylic acid in plant defense responses against biotic stresses. Plant Hormones 1, e004.

Gizaw, A., Marami, L.M., Teshome, I., Sarba, E.J., Admasu, P., Babele, D.A., Dilba, G.M., Bune, W.M., Bayu, M.D., Tadesse, M., Abdisa, K., 2022. Phytochemical screening and in vitro antifungal activity of selected medicinal plants against Candida albicans and Aspergillus niger in West Shewa Zone, Ethiopia. Advances in Pharmacological and Pharmaceutical Sciences 2022, 3299146.

Hussein, S.N., 2024. Some chemical and biological methods to control pepper root rot disease in Iraq. Indian Journal of Agricultural Research 58, 706-712.

Irkitbay, A., Madenova, A., Sapakhova, Z., 2023. The role of salicylic acid in the plant defense mechanism. Bulletin of the L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University. Bioscience Series 140, 83-96.

Jeyaprabha, J., Surega, R., Mudhalvan, S., Sathiskumar, M., Sindhu, S., 2024. In vitro evaluation of medicinal plant extracts against Fusarium yellows of French bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. phaseoli. International Journal of Research in Agronomy 7, 867-869.

Kiran, L., Bunker, R.N., 2020. Efficacy of fungicides, biocontrol agents and neem cake to suppress the wilt of cluster bean caused by Fusarium solani (Mart.) Sacc. International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences 9, 1339-1350.

Leben, S.D., Wadi, J.A., Easton, G.D., 1987. Effects of Pseudomonas fluorescens CHAO on potato plant growth and control of Verticillium dahliae. Phytopathology 77, 1592-1595.

Mishra, S., Roychowdhury, R., Ray, S., Hada, A., Kumar, A., Sarker, U., Aftab, T., Das, R., 2024. Salicylic acid (SA)-mediated plant immunity against biotic stresses: An insight on molecular components and signaling mechanism. Plant Stress 11, 100427.

Peng, Y., Yang, J., Li, X., Zhang, Y., 2021. Salicylic acid: Biosynthesis and signaling. Annual Review of Plant Biology 72, 761-791.

Perincherry, L., Urbaniak, M., Pawłowicz, I., Kotowska, K., Waśkiewicz, A., Stępień, Ł., 2021. Dynamics of Fusarium mycotoxins and lytic enzymes during pea plants’ infection. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 22, 9888.

Steel, R.G.D., Torrie, J.H., 1980. Principles and Procedures of Statistics: A Biometrical Approach, 2nd ed. McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York.

Tilahun, T., Abate, S., Andualem, S., Taye, M., 2026. Fusarium wilt in hot pepper: Biology, diagnostics, pathogenicity and sustainable management strategies. Journal of Phytopathology 174, e70230.

Tonk, D., Mujib, A., Maqsood, M., Khusrau, M., Alsughayyir, A., Dewir, Y.H., 2023. Fungal elicitation enhances vincristine and vinblastine yield in the embryogenic tissues of Catharanthus roseus. Plants 12, 3373.

Yasir, L.B., Almaliky, B.S.A., 2023. Integrated control of root rot and wilt disease on Catharanthus roseus using biological and chemical control. Iraqi Journal of Market Research and Consumer Protection 15, 132-146.

Yousif, Y.M., 2018. Effects sprayed solution of salicylic acid to prevent wilt disease caused by Fusarium oxysporum. Journal of Physics: Conference Series 1003, 012001.

Zahari, R., Terhem, R., Halimoon, N., Rusmadi, S.Z., Ahmad, M.F., Abdullah, N., 2019. Catharanthus roseus extract as bio-fungicide for controlling Fusarium oxysporum on selected vegetable seedlings. Asian Journal of Pharmaceutical Research 3, 14-22.

Zhou, F., Zhou, X., Jiao, Y., Han, A., Zhou, H., Chen, Z., Li, W., Liu, R., 2024. Baseline tebuconazole sensitivity and potential resistant risk in Fusarium graminearum. BMC Plant Biology 24, 789.




DOI: https://doi.org/10.33804/pp.010.03.6105

Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.