Antimicrobial activity of olive solutions from stored Alpeorujo against plant pathogenic microorganisms

The aim of this work was to assess the in vitro antimicrobial effects that wastewaters from alpeorujo oil extraction have against phytopathogenic bacteria and fungi. Alpeorujo was stored for 6 months and then processed to extract its oil, pomace, and a new liquid waste (OWSA), which was characterized by its content in phenolic compounds. OWSA at 20% decreased bu >4 log the population of Erwinia spp., Pseudomonas spp., and Clavibacter spp. viable cells in test tubes, whereas OWSA at 50% in agar medium was necessary to inhibit mycelial growth of most fungi. It was found that the bactericidal effect was due to the joint action of low molecular mass phenolic compounds, although neither hydroxytyrosol, its glucosides, hydroxytyrosol glycol, nor a glutaraldehyde-like compound individually explained this bioactivity. Hence, OWSA constitutes a promising natural solution to fight plant phytopathogenic bacteria and fungi.