Antifungal activity of Mucuna pruriens seed extractives and L-dopa.

摘要

Antifungal activity of velvet bean (Mucuna pruriens) seed extracts was investigated. Seeds were extracted first with hexane, then with ethyl acetate and finally with methanol. The extracts were evaluated for mycelial growth inhibition of 3 phytopathogenic fungi: Colletotrichumgloeosporioides, Colletotrichum capsici and Fusarium solani. The methanol extract demonstrated highest activity against all 3 test organisms. L-dopa (3-(3,4-dihydroxyphenyl)-L-alanine), which was qualitatively detected in the ethyl acetate and methanol extractives and quantitatively assessed in the seeds, showed antifungal activity against all 3 test organisms, suggesting that it is 1 of the active principles in these extracts.