The antifungal activity and mechanism of Perillaldehyde and its stabilized encapsulation technology for fruit preservation

Perillaldehyde (PAE), an essential oil extracted from perilla (Perilla frutescens (L.) Britt.), exhibits excellent antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. In this study, we found that the antifungal mechanism of PAE was attributed to the stimulation of ROS levels, destruction of mitochondrial function, and induction of spore apoptosis. Transcriptomic analysis showed that the gene expression pattern of Botrytis cinerea significantly changed after PAE treatment, and the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were mainly involved in the MAPK signaling pathway and cell wall integrity pathway. For the better utilization of PAE for fruit preservation, the inclusion complex (IC) of PAE and hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin was successfully synthesized by ultrasonic-assisted method, as proved by UV–vis spectroscopy, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermal properties analysis, scanning electron microscopy, and 1H NMR. It was demonstrated that water solubility and thermal stability of PAE/HPβCD-IC were significantly improved compared to pure PAE. Furthermore, both in vitro and in vivo antifungal assessment showed that PAE/HPβCD-IC was effective for inhibiting B. cinerea. Overall, our results indicated that PAE/HPβCD-IC had promising antifungal activity, water solubility and thermal stability, which provided a theoretical basis for the utilization of PAE/HPβCD-IC for fruit preservation.