In the current study, an ethyl acetate extract from the endophytic fungus Aspergillus sp. SPH2 isolated from the stem parts of the endemic plant Bethencourtia palmensis was screened for its biocontrol properties against plant pathogens (Fusarium moniliforme, Alternaria alternata, and Botrytis cinerea), insect pests (Spodoptera littoralis, Myzus persicae, Rhopalosiphum padi), plant parasites (Meloidogyne javanica), and ticks (Hyalomma lusitanicum). SPH2 gave extracts with strong fungicidal and ixodicidal effects at different fermentation times. The bioguided isolation of these extracts gave compounds 1–3. Mellein (1) showed strong ixodicidal effects and was also fungicidal. This is the first report on the ixodicidal effects of 1. Neoaspergillic acid (2) showed potent antifungal effects. Compound 2 appeared during the exponential phase of the fungal growth while neohydroxyaspergillic acid (3) appeared during the stationary phase, suggesting that 2 is the biosynthetic precursor of 3. The mycotoxin ochratoxin A was not detected under the fermentation conditions used in this work. Therefore, SPH2 could be a potential biotechnological tool for the production of ixodicidal extracts rich in mellein.

The nematicidal activity of hydrolate by-products from the semi industrial vapor-pressure essential oil extraction of selected aromatic plant species (commercial: Lavandula × intermedia Emeric ex Loisel. var. super, Thymus vulgaris L., T. zygis Loefl ex L. and experimentally pre-domesticated: L. luisieri (Rozeira) Rivas-Martínez) was investigated against the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne javanica by in vitro and in vivo bioassays. Liquid-liquid extraction of hydrolates yielded the corresponding aqueous and organic fractions which were biological and chemically studied. Hydrolates from L. × intermedia var. super, L. luisieri , T. vulgaris , and T. zygis showed strong in vitro nematicidal effects against M. javanica (J2 mortality and suppression of egg hatching). In the case of the Thymus species, the active components were found in the organic fraction, characterized by thymol as major component. Conversely, the nematicidal activity of L. × intermedia var. super and L. luisieri remained in the corresponding aqueous fractions. In vivo tests on tomato seedlings at sublethal doses of the hydrolates/organic fractions induced a significant reduction of nematode infectivity. In pot experiments, all hydrolates tested on tomato plants significantly affect the infection frequency and reproduction rate of the nematode population. This study demonstrates that L. × intermedia var. super, L. luisieri , T. vulgaris , and T. zygis hydrolates could be an exploitable source of potential waste protection products on root-knot nematodes.

The objective of this study was the preparation of supercritical (SCE), conventional hydrodistilled (HDE) and organic solvent (OSE) extracts from two Iberian Lavandula luisieri populations (A and B) to study their chemical composition and their insect antifeedant properties against Spodoptera littoralis and Myzus persicae. HDE and SCE extracts had different chemical compositions and insect antifeedant effects, extracts from population A being more effective. Compounds 5-hydroxymethyl-2,3,4,4-tetramethylcyclopent-2-en-1-one (6) and (2,2,3,4-tetramethyl-5-oxocyclopent-3-en-1-yl)-methyl acetate (7)were the major components of the SCE fractions of both populations. The supercritical technique (SFE) improved the extraction of 6, 7, oxo-cadinol (8), hexadecanoic acid and several not identified compounds with respect to HDE. SCE extracts also exhibited increased antifeedant effects against S. littoralis and the aphid M. persicae (A-SCE). The biological effects of the active extracts cannot be accounted for those of their individual major components, suggesting additive or synergistic effects.