Assessment of Trachyspermum ammi essential oil against Aspergillus flavus, aflatoxin B contamination, and post-harvest quality of Sorghum bicolor.

The present investigation explored the antifungal effectiveness of Trachyspermum ammi essential oil (TAEO) against Aspergillus flavus, aflatoxin B (AFB) contamination, and its mechanism of action using biochemical and computational approaches. The GC-MS result revealed the chemical diversity of TAEO with the highest percentage of γ-terpinene (39 %). The TAEO exhibited minimum inhibitory concentration against A. flavus growth (0.5 µL/mL) and AFB (0.4 µL/mL) with radical scavenging activity (IC = 2.13 µL/mL). The mechanism of action of TAEO was associated with the alteration in plasma membrane functioning, antioxidative defense, and carbon source catabolism. The molecular dynamic result shows the multi-regime binding of γ-terpinene with the target proteins (Nor1, Omt1, and Vbs) of AFB biosynthesis. Furthermore, TAEO exhibited remarkable in-situ protection of Sorghum bicolor seed samples against A. flavus and AFB contamination and protected the nutritional deterioration. Hence, the study recommends TAEO as a natural antifungal agent for food protection against A. flavus mediated biodeterioration.