| Abstract [eng] |
World Allergy Organization notes that due to climate change, the phenology of plants is changing, thus the amount of anemophilous pollen causing allergic diseases is increasing in the environment, while the increased humidity promotes the growth of microscopic fungi that not only cause allergic reactions but also contaminate food. Phenolic compounds make a large group of bioactive compounds. It is likely that by interacting with other bioactive compounds they could affect the cell wall of a microscopic fungus and disrupt important physiological processes. The aim of the research was to determine the amount of phenolic compounds in the pollen of anemophilous plants and to assess the effect of pollen extracts on the growth of microscopic fungi. In order to achieve the aim, the following objectives have been set: to evaluate the distribution of microscopic fungi (Alternaria spp., Cladosporium spp.) and pollen (birch, nettle, and wormwood) causing allergic reactions in the air of Šiauliai city; to examine the total amount of phenolic compounds in the pollen transported by anemophilous plants (birch, nettle, and wormwood); to determine the antifungal effect of pollen extracts on the growth of microscopic fungi (Alternaria spp., Cladosporium spp. ir Fusarium spp.). The research was conducted in 2018–2019 at the chemistry and biotechnology laboratories of Šiauliai University. Spectrophotometric method using Folin–Ciocalteu reagent was applied to determine the total amount of phenolic compounds. The antifungal activity of pollen extracts was tested using the potato dextrose agar method. Significant differences in the mean values of the results were evaluated using the one-way dispersion analysis programme ANOVA. The results of measuring the antifungal effect of the pollen were compared with the control variant and were evaluated using Fisher criterion. The differences are statistically reliable with reliability level of at least 95% confidence (*P≤0,05). The highest amount of phenolic compounds was found in the nettle pollen extract – 53,77±12,15 mg/g, while the lowest amount was found in wormwood pollen extract – 32,15±0,82 mg/g. However, in the present research, the concentration of phenolic compounds in the extracts had no significant effect. Inhibition of the growth of Alternaria spp. mycelium, as it was inhibited by birch pollen extract and nettle pollen extract of both concentrations, was the most statistically significant. Pollen extracts had little effect on the fungi of genera Cladosporium and Fusarium and statistically significant inhibitions of mycelium growth were limited to certain measurement periods. |
