The polylactic acid-glycolic acid copolymer (PLGA) has been proven to be applicable in medicine, but there is limited research on its application and safety in the agricultural field. In this paper, thifluzamide PLGA microspheres were prepared via phacoemulsification and solvent volatilization, using the PLGA copolymer as the carrier and thifluzamide as the active component. It was found that the microspheres had good slow-release performance and fungicidal activity against Rhizoctonia solani. A comparative study was conducted to show the effect of thifluzamide PLGA microspheres on cucumber seedlings. Physiological and biochemical indexes of cucumber seedlings, including dry weight, root length, chlorophyll, protein, flavonoids, and total phenol content, indicated that the negative effect of thifluzamide on plant growth could be mitigated when it was wrapped in PLGA microspheres. This work explores the feasibility of PLGA as carriers in fungicide applications.
Keywords: cucumber growth; fungicide delivery; microspheres; polylactic acid-glycolic acid copolymer; thifluzamide.