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The antifungal potential of one of the lesser known members of Annonaceae, Uvaria narum (Dunal) Wall. prominently found in Western Ghats of Kerala and Mangalore, were tested against two important plant fungal pathogens, Fusarium moniliforme that causes Leaf Rot in Coconut, and Corynespora cassiicola, the causagent of Leaf Fall in Rubber. The leaves of Uvaria narum were subjected to sequential soxhelet extraction in four solvents, ie, Petroleum Ether (PE), Chloroform (Chl), Acetone (Ac) and Methanol (Me). The extracts thus obtained were subjected to antifungal tests by Poison Food Technique. The inhibition percentage was noted for every extract. A very good antifungal potential was exhibited by the Petroleum Ether and Chloroform extracts of U.narum against both the tested fungus while acetone and methanol extracts showed no inhibition at all. The hot soxhelet extractions of PE showed better inhibition to the growth of both the fungi than cold extraction in PE thereby proving that the compound with antifungal potential was better extracted by soxhelet method than the cold method of extraction. It could also prove that the bioactive compound was thermally stable.
Keywords: Sequential Soxhelet Extraction, Inhibition, Thermally stable, Poison Food Technique, Causagent