Antifungal Activity of 2-Allylphenol Derivatives on the Botrytis cinerea Strain: Assessment of Possible Action Mechanism

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 24; no. 7; p. 6530
• Main Authors: Olea, Andres F, Rubio, Julia, Sedan, Claudia, Carvajal, Denisse, Nuñez, Maria, Espinoza, Luis, Llovera, Ligia, Nuñez, Gerard, Taborga, Lautaro, Carrasco, Héctor
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 31-03-2023; MDPI
• Subjects: 2-allylphenol; Alternative oxidase; alternative oxidase enzyme; Antifungal activity; Antifungal agents; Antifungal Agents - chemistry; AOX inhibitors; Aromatic compounds; Botrytis; Botrytis cinerea; Conidia; Enzymes; Fruits; Fungi; Fungicides; Fungicides, Industrial - chemistry; Germination; Hydroxyl groups; Mycelia; Natural products; Oils & fats; Pesticides; Phenols; Phytopathogenic fungi; Plant diseases; Respiration; AOX inhibitors; Botrytis cinerea; alternative oxidase enzyme; 2-allylphenol; antifungal activity
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms24076530

is a phytopathogenic fungus that causes serious damage to the agricultural industry by infecting various important crops. 2-allylphenol has been used in China as a fungicide for more than a decade, and it has been shown that is a respiration inhibitor. A series of derivatives of 2-allylphenol were synthesized and their activity against
was evaluated by measuring mycelial growth inhibition. Results indicate that small changes in the chemical structure or the addition of substituent groups in the aromatic ring induce important variations in activity. For example, changing the hydroxyl group by methoxy or acetyl groups produces dramatic increases in mycelial growth inhibition, i.e., the IC
value of 2-allylphenol decreases from 68 to 2 and 1 μg mL
. In addition, it was found that the most active derivatives induce the inhibition of
expression in the early stages of
conidia germination. This gene is associated with the activation of the alternative oxidase enzyme (AOX), which allows fungus respiration to continue in the presence of respiratory inhibitors. Thus, it seems that 2-allylphenol derivatives can inhibit the normal and alternative respiratory pathway of
. Therefore, we believe that these compounds are a very attractive platform for the development of antifungal agents against
.