Distribution and antifungal activity of medicinal plant Solanum nigrum L. (Solanaceae) in the Nile Delta of Egypt

• Autores: Dalia A. Ahmed
• Localización: Ecologia mediterranea: Revue internationale d'écologie méditerranéenne = International Journal of Mediterranean Ecology, ISSN 1775-4100, Vol. 40, Nº. 2, 2014, págs. 29-40
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • The present study aims to study the distribution of Solanum nigrum L. in the Nile Delta to assess the factors that affect its occurrence, and determine the associated species and plant communities. It also aims at evaluating the antifungal activity of different plant parts like leaf, stem, berry and whole plant extracts against some fungal pathogens (e.g. Aspergillus niger). One hundred and twenty two stands were sampled during summer 2011-2013 to represent its population in 5 habitats in Nile Delta (waste lands, irrigation canals, fields of winter crops, fields of summer crops and orchards), but it most frequent in irrigation canals and fields of winter crops. The total number of associated species was 50 species, belonged to 39 genera and 17 families. Seven vegetation groups resulted from the analyses of the floristic data: TWINSPAN classification and DCA ordination. Group I vegetation represented the orchards, II represented the fields of summer crops, III represented canals and IV, VI and VII represented the five habitats, while V represented waste lands. Soil characteristics affecting Solanum occurrence the most were clay, EC and pH, as determined by the CCA. The plant contained secondary metabolites (e.g. alkaloids, flavonoids, saponins, tannins, steroids and phenols). The whole plant extracts showed higher potential antifungal activity than leaf, stem and berry extracts particularly when taken from irrigation canals