Control of Fungal Contaminants on Cocoa Pods Obtained from Akungba and Ogbagi Akoko
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54987/jemat.v12i2.1002Keywords:
Antifungal agents, Cocoa pods, Fungi, Microbial contaminants, Cocoa spoilageAbstract
A cocoa pod has a thick, rough, and tough surface, which is usually filled with mucilaginous pulp that coats and protects cocoa beans. This mucilaginous pulp is sweet and allows growth of fungal contaminants. This study determined antifungal activity of some fungi obtained from some cocoa pods. Isolated organisms were cultured, identified using their macroscopic and microscopic characteristics, compared with those of compendium of soil fungi, pictorial atlas of soil, and seed fungi. Antifungal activity assay was conducted using agar-well diffusion method containing nystatin, fluconazole, ketoconazole or griseofulvin at 200 mg/mL, 100 mg/mL, and 50 mg/mL concentrations. The results revealed the presence of twelve fungal genera that include Aspergillus, Aureobasidium, Byssochlamys, Chrysosporium, Cladosporium, Colletotrichum, Curvularia, Epicoccum, Fusarium, Geomyces, Syncephalastrum, and Trichoderma. Aspergillus species had the highest percentage of occurrence (14.3%). The findings showed that all tested antifungal agents had varied degrees of inhibition against isolated organisms and that fluconazole had the highest inhibition zone of 40 mm against A. niger and S. racemosum (at a concentration of 200 mg/mL). Nystatin had the least antifungal activity against C. xerophilum (10 mm at 50 mg/mL) while griseofulvin had little or no activity against tested organisms. The findings underscore the need for proper monitoring to safeguard cocoa quality and to prevent likely cocoa beans spoilage via fungal contamination. The study recommends the use of nystatin, ketoconazole, and fluconazole for the control of fungal contaminants.
References
Cosgrove SE, Carmelita Y. The impact of antimicrobial resistance on health and economic outcomes. Clin Infect Dis. 2003;36(11):1433-7.
Oddoye EOK, Agyente-Badu CK, Gyedu-Akoto E. Cocoa and its by-products: Identification and utilization. Chocolate Health Nutr. 2012;13:23-37.
Nigam PSN. Cocoa and coffee fermentations. Elsevier Books. 1999;6:485-92.
International Cocoa Organization (ICO). International Cocoa Organization. [Internet]. 2010 [cited 2023 Nov 1]. Available from: https://www.icco.org
Amin I, Koh B, Asmah R. Effect of cacao liquor extract on tumor marker enzymes during chemical hepatocarcinogenesis in rats. J Med Food. 2004;7(1):7-12.
Adejumo TO. Crop protection strategies for major diseases of cocoa, coffee and cashew in Nigeria. Afr J Biotechnol. 2005;4(2):143-50.
Oyekale AS, Bolaji MB, Olowa OW. The effect of climate change on cocoa and vulnerability assessment in Nigeria. Agric J. 2009;4:77-85.
Adeniyi DO, Asogwa EU. Complexes and diversity of pathogens and insect pests of cocoa tree. Forest Microbiol. 2023;2(5):285-311.
Rice RA, Greenberg R. Cacao cultivation and the conservation of biological diversity. AMBIO J Hum Environ. 2000;29(3):167-73.
Opoku IY, Assuah MK, Aneani F. Management of black pod disease of cocoa with reduced number of fungicide application and crop sanitation. Afr J Agric Res. 2007;2(11):601-4.
Bawage S, Nerkar S, Kumar A, Das A. Morphological and molecular description of Phytophthora insolita isolated from citrus orchard in India. J Mycol. 2013;1-7.
Khan S, Singhal S, Mathur T, Upadhyay D, Rattan A. Antifungal susceptibility testing method for resource-constrained laboratories. Indian J Med Microbiol. 2006;24(3):171-6.
Evans HC, Holmes KA, Thomas SE. Endophytes and mycoparasites associated with an indigenous forest tree, Theobroma gileri, in Ecuador and a preliminary assessment of their potential as biocontrol agents of cocoa diseases. Mycol Prog. 2003;2(2):149-60.
Rubini MR, Silva-Ribeiro RT, Pomella AWV, Maki CS, Araújo WL, dos Santos DR, et al. Diversity of endophytic fungal community of cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) and biological control of Crinipellis perniciosa. Int J Biol Sci. 2005;1(1):24-33.
Barnett HL, Hunter BB. Illustrated genera of imperfect fungi. 4th ed. St. Paul: APS Press; 1998. 218 p.
Magaldi S, Mata-Essayag S, Hartung de Capriles C, Perez C, Colella M, Olaizola C, et al. Well diffusion for antifungal susceptibility testing. Int J Infect Dis. 2004;8(1):39-45.
Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI). Performance standards for antimicrobial susceptibility testing. 30th ed. CLSI supplement M-100. Wayne (PA): CLSI; 2020.
Copetti MV, Iamanaka BT, Pitt JI, Taniwaki MH. Fungi and mycotoxins in cocoa: From farm to chocolate. Int J Food Microbiol. 2014;178:13-20.
Fapohunda S, Moore G, Aroyeun S, Ayeni K, Aduroja D, Odetunde S. Isolation and characterization of fungi isolated from Nigerian cocoa samples. Curr Life Sci. 2020;4(3):46-52.
Medjap ASZ, Aoudou Y, Mbonomo RB. Aggressiveness of the fungi responsible for pod rot in cropping systems based on cocoa trees in Cameroon. Am J Agric For. 2021;9(3):156-63.
Sobrova P, Adam V, Vasatkova A, Beklova M, Zeman L, Kizek R. Deoxynivalenol and its toxicity. Interdiscipl Toxicol. 2010;3(3):94-9.
Jayaprakash A, Thanmalagan RR, Roy A, Arunachalam A, Lakshmi P. Strategies to understand Aspergillus flavus resistance mechanism in Arachis hypogaea L. Curr Plant Biol. 2019;20:100-23.
Copetti MV, Iamanaka BT, Frisvad JC, Pereira JL, Taniwaki MH. Mycobiota of cocoa: From farm to chocolate. Food Microbiol. 2011;28(8):1499-504.
Kotzekidou P. Byssochlamys. Encycl Food Microbiol. 2014;14:344-50.
Romero-Cortes T, López-Pérez PA, Ramírez-Lepe M, Cuervo-Parra JA. Kinetic modeling of mycoparasitism by Trichoderma harzianum against Cladosporium cladosporioides isolated from cocoa fruits (Theobroma cacao). Chilean J Agric Anim Sci. 2016;32(1):32-45.
Akinde S, Lamidi W, Ayeni M. Fungi associated with a dry invasive white patch on trunks of economic fruit trees in south-west Nigeria. Afr Crop Sci J. 2019;27(1):1-12.
Zulfitri A, Zulfiana D, Meisyara D, Guswenrivo I, Kartika T, Lestari AS. Detection of phytopathogen and antagonistic fungi on the black diseased-cacao pod. IOP Conf Ser Earth Environ Sci. 2019;374(1):1-20.
Sanguinetti M, Posteraro B. Susceptibility testing of fungi to antifungal drugs. J Fungi. 2018;4(3):110-5.
Arora S, Dhuria N, Jindal N, Galhotra S. Speciation, biofilm formation, and antifungal susceptibility of Candida isolates. Int J Res Dev Pharm Life Sci. 2017;6:2517-21.
Bonvehí J. Occurrence of ochratoxin A in cocoa products and chocolate. J Agric Food Chem. 2004;52(20):6347-52.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 O.R. Adeoyo, E.F. Eweola
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
