The separation of chemical components from wild plants to develop new pesticides is a hot topic in current research. To evaluate the antimicrobial effects of metabolites of Ligusticum chuanxiong (CX), we systematically studied the antimicrobial activity of extracts of CX, and the active compounds were isolated, purified and structurally identified. The results of toxicity measurement showed that the extracts of CX had good biological activities against Botrytis cinerea, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, Alternaria alternata and Pythium aphanidermatum, and the value of EC50 were 130.95, 242.36, 332.73 and 307.29 mg/L, respectively. The results of in vivo determination showed that under the concentration of 1000 mg/L, the control effect of CX extract on Blumeria graminis was more than 40%, and the control effect on Botrytis cinerea was 100%. The antifungal active components of CX were identified as Senkyunolide A and Ligustilide by mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance. The MIC (minimum inhibitory concentration) value of Senkyunolide A and Ligustilide against Fusarium graminearum were 7.81 and 62.25 mg/L, respectively. As a new botanical fungicide with a brightly exploitative prospect, CX extract has potential research value in the prevention and control of plant diseases.
Keywords: Ligusticum chuanxiong; Ligustilide; Senkyunolide A; antifungal activity.