In vivo Antifungal Activity Against Various Plant Pathogenic Fungi of Curcuminoids Isolated from the Rhizomes of Curcuma longa

In a search for plant extracts with potent in vivo antifungal activity against various plant pathogenic fungi, the methanol extract of the Curcuma longa rhizomes effectively controlled the development of rice blast catised by Magnaporthe grisea and tomato late blight caused by Phytophthora infestans. Three curcuminoids such as curcumin, demethoxycurcumin, and bisdemethoxycurcumin were purified from the methanol extract of C. longa rhizomes as antifungal principles. Among the three curcuminoids, demethoxycurcumin was the most active to both rice blast and tomato late blight, followed in order by curcumin and bisdemethoxycurcumin. However, they all exhibited no or little in vivo antifungal activity against other fungal pathogens causing rice sheath blight (Corticium sasaki), tomato gray mold (Botrytis cinerea), wheat leaf rust (Puccinia recondita), or barley powdery mildew (Blumeria graminis f. sp. hordel).