Natural substances with biological activity could be another interesting alternative.
This has, however, been less investigated and few studies have been reported on the efficacy of natural compounds against B. cinerea on strawberries.
tested some natural volatile compounds with an antifungal activity against the pathogen on artificially inoculated strawberry fruit.
A large group of bioactive compounds including molecules derived from the enzymatic hydrolysis of glucosinolates (GLs), such as isothiocyanates (ITCs) are active against a wide range of pathogens affecting food .
The GLs are an extensive group of -thioglucoside-N-hydroxysulphate anionic compounds particularly present in Brassica crops, where a single GL is often dominant.
GLs are hydrolyzed by the endogenous enzyme myrosinase (MYR), producing not only ITCs, butalso a combination of nitriles,thiocyanates and oxazolidine thiones according to hydrolysis conditions and the chemical properties of the GL side chain .
Some ITCs are characterized by high volatility and so they could potentially be applied as gaseous treatments of fruit and vegetables through ‘biofumigation’,
commonly used for soil-borne pest control .