Chemical composition of Ocimum basilicum L. essential oil and its efficacy as a preservative against fungal and aflatoxin contamination of dry fruits

Summary The study presents fungal and aflatoxin contamination of some dry fruits and Ocimum basilicum essential oil (EO) as a plant‐based preservative. During mycoflora analysis, 2045 fungal isolates were recorded from dry fruits and 40% isolates of Aspergillus flavus were toxigenic in nature. The EO of O. basilicum exhibited strong fungitoxicity against toxigenic strain of A. flavus . Its minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) was recorded at...