Direct antifungal activity of methyl salicylate on soft rot caused by Rhizopus stolonifer and its membrane targeting mechanism

Methyl salicylate (MeSA) plays a significant role in various physiological metabolic processes of plants, however, reports on the antifungal activity were rare. This study aimed to investigate the direct antifungal activity of MeSA against Rhizopus stolonifer and to explore its antifungal mechanism at the membrane targeting level. Our study demonstrated that MeSA had antifungal activity. MeSA inhibited the mycelial growth and spore germination of Rhizopus stolonifer, and acted on the plasma membrane, changed the integrity and permeability of the cell membrane, leaked cell contents, induced reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation, stimulated membrane lipid peroxidation, changed the morphology of the mycelium, and finally caused apoptosis. In addition, in vivo experiments, MeSA significantly delayed the occurrence of soft rot of various fruits and vegetables. The results indicated that MeSA has direct antifungal activity for Rhizopus stolonifer, and proposed its antifungal mechanism from membrane targeting. •Methyl salicylate (MeSA) delayed Rhizopus soft rot of various fruits;•MeSA showed a direct antifungal effect on Rhizopus stolonifer;•MeSA destroyed cell membrane permeability and integrity of Rhizopus stolonifer.