Phylloplane microfungi altering total phenols and flavonoids in Solanum lycopersicum leaves

The present study was undertaken to quantitatively estimate total phenols and flavonoids by the colorimetric analysis of the methanolic extracts of nine week old Solanum lycopersicum plant leaves infected with 12 fungal species i.e. Alternaria alternata, A.citrifolia, Aspergillus niger, A.falvus, A.candidus, Penicillium expansum, Curvlaria lunata, Cladosporium cladosporioides, C.herbarum, Fusarium oxysporum, Trichoderma harzianum and Rhizoctonia solani, isolated from the same habitat, both singly and in combinations. The analysis of phenolic and flavonoid contents showed an upsurge upon microbial inoculation on leaves as compared to the uninoculated control. Lowest amount of phenols was estimated from C.herbarum infected leaves (0.016 mg/g) at 0 hours, while highest was recorded from R.solani+C.herbarum inoculated leaves (5.996 mg/g) at 48 hours of inoculation. Similarly, lowest amount of flavonoids was assessed from C.lunata infected leaves (0.844 mg/g) at 0 hours, and highest was observed from Fusarium oxysporum inoculated ones (4.287 mg/g) at 72 hours of spraying. The study can prove beneficial for exploring the dynamics of plant-microbe interactions and evaluation of simple and polyphenols for antioxidant and antimicrobial properties.