Kaolin/ Arabic Gum Nanocomposite as an Antifungal Agent Against Aspergillus flavus and Saccharomyces Cerevisiae

Abstract

Kaolin/ Arabic Gum nanocomposite was cheaply synthesized from Kaolin andArabic Gum. The Kaolin/ Arabic Gum nanocomposite suspension, Arabic Gumextracts and Kaolin suspension were applied as antifungal agents. The antifungalactivity was tested using the agar well diffusion method, whereby wells were madeon the petri dishes with a cork borer of 6 mm diameter in size.Variousconcentrations (150 μg/L, 200 μg/L, and 250 μg/L) of Arabic Gum ethanol extracts,Arabic Gum/ Kaolin nanocomposite, and Kaolin were propelled into the wells withthe help of a micropipette and the petri dishes were allowed to stand for 30 minutesto ensure proper diffusion before being incubated at 37oC. The results showed thatthe synthesized Kaolin/ Arabic Gum nanocomposite and Arabic Gum possesssignificant antifungal activities against Aspergillusflavus and Saccharomycescerevisiae. No antifungal activity was detected for Kaolin against Aspergillusflavusand Saccharomyces cerevisiae. From the results obtained, it could be concluded thatthe synthesized Kaolin/ Arabic Gum nanocomposite and Arabic Gum possesssignificant antifungal activity against Aspergillusflavus and Saccharomycescerevisiae.