ANTIFUNGAL AND NEMATICIDAL ACTIVITY OF SELECTED LEGUMES OF PAKISTAN

Abstract

The antifungal activity of legume seed extracts was tested against 6 fungi, viz., Trichophyton longifusus, Candida albicans, Aspergilus flavus, Microsporum canis, Fusarium solani and Candida glaberata. The extracts showed moderate activity against different fungal strains. Nematicidal activity has also been carried out to evaluate their potential toxicity against juveniles of the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne spp. In vitro results showed that ethanolic extract of these legumes caused appreciable mortality of second stage juveniles of Meloidogyne javanica and Meloidogyne incognita. The concentrations used @ 1% and 0.5% were found more effective and produced significant results as compared to 0.25%, and 0.1%. The mortality rate increased with increasing exposure time for most of the extracts.