In Vitro Activity of Neem (Azadirachta indica) Oil on Growth and Ochratoxin A Production by Aspergillus carbonarius Isolates

Aspergillus carbonarius is a saprobic filamentous fungus, food spoiling fungus and a producer of ochratoxin A (OTA) mycotoxin. In this study, the in vitro antifungal activity of neem oil (0.12% p/p of azadirachtin) was evaluated against the growth of six strains of A. carbonarius and the production of OTA. Four different concentrations of neem oil were tested in addition to three incubation times. Only the concentration of 0.3% of neem oil inhibited more than 95% of the strain’s growth (97.6% ± 0.5%), while the use of 0.5% and 1.0% of neem oil showed lower antifungal activity, 40.2% ± 3.1 and 64.7% ± 1.1, respectively. There was a complete inhibition of OTA production with 0.1% and 0.3% neem oil in the four strains isolated in the laboratory from grapes. The present study shows that neem essential oil can be further evaluated as an auxiliary method for the reduction of mycelial growth and OTA production.