83 Effect of Prunus laurocerasus L. (Cherry Laurel) Leaf Extracts on Growth of Bread Spoilage Fungi Bulgarian Journal of Agricultural Science, 17 (No 1) 2011, 83-92 Agricultural Academy EffEct of Prunus laurocerasus L. (chErry LaurEL) LEaf Extracts on Growth of BrEad spoiLaGE funGi Y. SAHAN Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Agriculture, Uludag University, 16059 Gorukle - Bursa, Turkey abstract SAHAN, Yasemin, 2011. Effect of Prunus laurocerasus L. (Cherry Laurel) leaf extracts on growth of bread spoilage fungi. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., 17: 83-92 Six different extracts (4 solvent extracts and 2 water extracts) of Prunus laurocerasus L., leaf were used to determine the antifungal effect of it on Aspergillus chevalieri, A. favus, A. fumigatus, A. niger, A. oryzae, A. parasiticus, Fusarium oxysporum, Mucor spp., Penicillium commune, P. islandicum, P. roqueforti, P. solitum, P. verrucosum, Rhizopus oligosporus and R. stolonifer by disc diffusion and micro dilution methods. Statistical results showed that the kind and amount of extracts have a signifcant effect against tested fungi. The maximal inhibition zone, MIC and MFC values for fungal strains, which were sensitive to extracts of P. laurocerasus L. leaf, were in range of 2-19 mm, 7, 8-500 µg/ml and 15.6-500 µg/ml, respectively. The highest total antifungal ef- fect was observed from ethanol and acetone extracts. Comparing the sensitivity of the fungi to all P. laurocerasus L. leaf extracts, P. verrucosum demonstrated higher resistance than the other test fungi while F. oxysporum was the most sensitive microorganism (p < 0.05). Key words: Prunus laurocerasus L., cherry laurel, Extracts, Bread Spoilage, MIC, MFC E-mail:yasemins@uludag.edu.tr introduction Cereal products, especially bread, have been a major source of food for the human being since the commencement of civilization. Bread con- sumption has increased with the passage of time, such that it has become an integral and established staple part of the diet of the populace. Worldwide, bread is, and has been a central constituent in the diets of most populations for thousands of years. The bakery sector is also a major contributor to economic growth and employment opportunities. In Europe there are over 120000 enterprises active in bread-making, the vast majority of which are small craft bakers. Given its size, the bakery sector can be considered to be one of the most important sectors of the food industry as a whole(Abdullah, 2008). Bread, one of the most important staple foods in the world, can be spoiled by many moulds(Legan, 1993). Contaminants of bread are mainly Penicil- lium species, but Aspergillus, Rhizopus, Fusarium, Mucor and Eurotium species also occur, the latter especially in warmer climates. The most important mould species on bread are Penicillium commune, P. crustosum, P. brevicompactum, P. chrysogenum,