LAUSR

BACKGROUND Filamentous fungi are the main contamination agent in the viticultural sector. Use of synthetic fungicides is the regular answer to these contaminations. Nevertheless, due to several problems associated with the use of synthetic compounds the industry demands new and safer methods. In the present work, the biopreservation potential of four lactic acid bacteria (LAB) strains was studied against the principal grape contaminant fungi. RESULTS Agar diffusion test evidenced that all four culture-free supernatant (CFS) had antifungal properties against all tested fungi. The Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) and Minimum Fungicidal Concentration (MFC) test values evidenced that media fermented by the Lactobacillus plantarum E3 and Lactobacillus plantarum E4 strains showed the highest antifungal activity, resulting in an MFC from 6.3 to 100 g L-1 . Analysis of CFS evidenced the presence of different antifungal compounds, such as lactic acid, phenyllactic acid and pyrazines. In tests on red grapes, an average reduction of 1.32 Log10 of the spores per gram of fruit was achieved by all CFS in grapes inoculated with Aspergillus ochraceous and by 0.94 Log10 for L. plantarum E3 CFS against Botrytis cinerea. CONCLUSION The antifungal activity of the fermented CFS by L. plantarum E3 reduced the growth of B. cinerea and A. ochraceous in grapes, which are the main contaminant and main productor of ochratoxin A in these crops, respectively. Therefore, based on the results obtained in this work use of the strain L. plantarum E3 can be an interesting option for the biopreservation of grapes. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.