Mangos (Mangifera indica L.) are tropical/subtropical fruits belonging to the plant family Anacardiaceae. Anthracnose is the most deleterious disease of mango both in the field and during postharvest handling. It is most commonly caused by the Colletotrichum gloeosporioides complex. Mangiferin, a xanthanoid compound found in at least twelve plant families worldwide (Luo et al., 2012), is present in large amounts of the leaves and edible mangos. Even though this compound plays a pivotal role in the plant’s defense against biotic and abiotic stressors, no correlations been made between the compound and mango anthracnose resistance.
Mangos were collected, grouped according to their countries of origin, and evaluated for their mangiferin concentrations at four different stages of development. Extracts of interest were then tested against different strains of C. gloeosporioides. The results demonstrated that mangiferin concentrations are significantly different at different stages in fruit development. The antifungal assays were inconclusive.
