Abstract

Analysis of essential oils obtained from the seeds (SEO) and leaves (LEO) of Foeniculum vulgare Mill cultivated in southeast of Morocco revealed that trans-anethole was the major constituent (54.67% of seed oil and 50.60% in leaf oil), followed by estragol (35.33% in seed oil and 30.15% in leaf oil). Other components present in leaf oil included fenchone, linalool and α-pinene, while seed oil contained fenchone, limonene and γ-terpinen. Besides, minor constituents like camphene, camphor, myrcene, pahllandrene, fenchyl acetate and β-bisabolene were obtained from seeds and leaves. The essential oils of the seeds and leaves of Foeniculum vulgare were assayed for their antifungal activity by poison food (PF) technique and the volatile activity assay (VA) against five agricultural pathogenic fungi. The results indicated that the essential oil of Foeniculum vulgare inhibited the mycelial growth of all fungal strains tested. VA assay of essential oil was consistently found to be more effective than PF technique. The mycelium growth was completely inhibited by LEO on Alternaria sp., Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. albedinis and Aspergillus brasiliensis at 0.25 µl mL-1 air. Rhizopus stolonifera was the most sensitive with a minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) = 0.25 µl mL-1 air.

Key words: Foeniculum vulgare; Essential oil; Antifungal activity; Chemical composition.