Matrine inhibits mycelia growth of Botryosphaeria dothidea by affecting membrane permeability

Matrine is a promising botanical antifungal; however, the mechanism underlying the antifungal activity is yet limited. We studied the antifungal activity of matrine and the underlying mechanism in Botryosphaeria dothidea as a model strain. Matrine strongly inhibited mycelial growth of B. dothidea in a dose-dependent manner. Matrine-treated B. dothidea showed morphological and ultrastructural alterations, including shriveled hyphae, plasmolysis, and leakage of cytoplasm related to cell membrane deterioration. In addition, matrine caused significantly high conductivity and absorbance (260 nm) in extracellular matrices and low lipid contents in B. dothidea, indicating increased membrane permeability. Lipid peroxidation showed that matrine resulted in increased malondialdehyde content while enhancing the generation of reactive oxygen species and the activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidase. These results showed that matrine inhibited the mycelial growth of B. dothidea by enhancing cell membrane permeability via membrane lipid peroxidation.