Green synthesis and antifungal evaluation of Moringa oleifera-mediated iron oxide nanoparticles against Rhizopus stolonifer infecting Coleus scutellarioides.

Authors

Sadaf Anwaar, Maryam Bibi, Ansa Muqaddas, Ayesha Arif, Osama Alam, Tauseef Anwar, Huma Qureshi, Hossam S El-Beltagi, Muydinjon M Muminov, Mohammed S Alotaibi, Khudiyev Orkhan, Ibtisam M Alsudays, Khalid H Alamer, Rasha M Alzayed, Sondos A Alhajouj

Published in

Folia microbiologica. Jul 10, 2026. Epub Jul 10, 2026.

Abstract

Fungal diseases reduce the ornamental and medicinal value of Coleus scutellarioides, while reliance on synthetic fungicides raises concerns regarding resistance development and environmental safety. Green synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles using plant extracts offers a potentially safer alternative for disease suppression. This study evaluated Moringa oleifera leaf extract as a reducing and stabilizing agent for the synthesis of iron oxide nanoparticles and assessed their antifungal activity against Rhizopus stolonifer under greenhouse conditions. Iron oxide nanoparticles were synthesized using aqueous M. oleifera leaf extract and characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, FTIR, XRD, and SEM. A greenhouse experiment was conducted using four treatments: control, 2 ppm, 4 ppm, and 7 ppm. Each treatment had three biological replicates. Disease severity and disease incidence were recorded 7 days after inoculation and analyzed by one-way ANOVA followed by Tukey's HSD test at p < 0.05. UV-Vis analysis showed a distinct absorption peak at 595 nm. FTIR confirmed Fe-O absorption in the 400-600 cm⁻¹ region, while XRD identified crystalline α-Fe₂O₃. SEM showed flake-like aggregated particle domains ranging from 175 to 247 nm. Disease severity declined from 73.33% in the control to 26.66% at 7 ppm, whereas disease incidence decreased from 56.25% to 26.31%. ANOVA showed significant treatment effects for disease severity (F = 34.27, p < 0.001) and disease incidence (F = 28.14, p < 0.001). Green-synthesized iron oxide particles derived from M. oleifera significantly reduced Rhizopus disease development in C. scutellarioides in a dose-dependent manner under short-term greenhouse conditions. Future studies should include validation with additional R. stolonifer isolates, culture-collection reference strains, mechanistic assays, longer evaluation periods, positive fungicide controls, and field validation before broader application is considered.

PMID:
42429851
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 10 Jul 2026.

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