Antifungal activity of nano and micro charcoal particle polymers against Paecilomyces variotii, Trichoderma virens and Chaetomium globosum

•Mycelial growth of P. variotii, T. virens and C. globosum was suppressed by charcoal polymers.•Protrusion of nano and micro sized charcoals were found on polymer surfaces.•Adsorption of Ca2+ by charcoals on polymer caused the inhibition of mycelial growth.•Nano-sized pores in charcoals were thought to participate in Ca2+ adsorption. This study investigates the antifungal activity of a polymer integrated with nano-porous charcoal particles against Paecilomyces variotii, Chaetomium globosum, Trichoderma virens, which are all filamentous fungi. The charcoal polymers were prepared by combining charcoal powders with plastic resin under a vacuum to form charcoal particle protrusions on the polymer surface. The mycelial growth of P. variotii and T. virens exhibited a reduction of 10 and 30%, respectively, after the conidia were pre-treated with charcoal polymers, and in particular, no mycelial growth was found in C. globosum during 5 days of culture. The adsorption of Ca2+ into charcoal was suggested to inhibit growth due to the reduction in the flux of calcium ions (Ca2+) into the hyphae. In 5h, about 15mM of Ca2+ were removed from CaCl2 solution with 0.2g/mL of polymers, and the nano-sized pores of the charcoals on the polymer were responsible for the Ca2+ adsorption.