Vol.:(0123456789) 1 3 Indian Phytopathology https://doi.org/10.1007/s42360-020-00194-2 RESEARCH ARTICLE Antagonistic activity of phylloplane yeasts from Moringa oleifera Lam. leaves against Aspergillus flavus UNJCC F‑30 from chicken feed Dalia Sukmawati 1,2  · Marsha Hanin Andrianto 1  · Zico Arman 1  · Nuniek Ina Ratnaningtyas 3  · Shabrina Nida Al Husna 4  · Hesham Ali El‑Enshasy 5,6  · Daniel Dailin 5  · Ahmed Atta Kenawy 6 Received: 10 April 2019 / Revised: 7 January 2020 / Accepted: 27 January 2020 © Indian Phytopathological Society 2020 Abstract Aspergillus flavus is widely known as an afatoxin-producing fungus that frequently contaminates feed and afects livestock, which leads to severe health problem for animal and human. Biological agents have been proven to prevent this contamination since they can produce metabolites which have antagonistic activity. In this study, phylloplane yeasts isolated from Moringa oleifera leaf have shown an ability to inhibit the growth of Aspergillus flavus UNJCC F-30 collected from chicken feed. This research was conducted in three stages: (1) yeast isolation (leaf washing and direct method), followed by (2) antagonistic test using dual culture method, and (3) molecular identifcation using D1/D2 region of 26S rDNA. In the frst stage, 38 yeast isolates have been succesfully obtained. These isolates were of diferent colors: peach pigment (60.5%), the non-pigmented yeast (26.5%), cream (10%), and orange (3%). Antagonistic activity against A. flavus UNJCC F-30 was tested based on growth, sporulation, and the presence of clear zones. Screening result showed that 12 yeast isolates are capable of inhibiting A. flavus UNJCC F-30. Among them, 4 isolates with the code K4, K10, K15, and K26 showed the highest antagonist ability. Molecular identifcation resulted that the 4 isolates show a similar identity with Aureobasidium pullulans UWFP 993 (100%), Aureobasidium melanogenum QCC:M017/17 (99%), Aureobasidium melanogenum QCC:M017/17 (100%) and Rhodotorula taiwanensis CBS:11729 (99%), respectively. Isolate K10 exhibited the highest percentage of inhibition activity among all isolates which is potential for application as biocontrol agent against A. flavus. As A. pullulans is a common yeast found on leaf surfaces of many Indonesian fora, therefore it can be considered as safe and alternative to reduce fungal contamination from A. flavus in feed chicken. Keywords Antangonistic · Asperillus flavus · Yeast · Morinaga oleifera · Aureobasidium * Dalia Sukmawati Dalia-Sukmawati@unj.ac.id Marsha Hanin Andrianto marshahanin@gmail.com Zico Arman zicoarman88@gmail.com Nuniek Ina Ratnaningtyas nuniek165@yahoo.com Shabrina Nida Al Husna shabrina.nida@gmail.com Hesham Ali El-Enshasy henshasy@ibd.utm.my Daniel Dailin jddaniel@utm.my Ahmed Atta Kenawy aatta75@yahoo.com 1 Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Jakarta, Rawamangun, Jakarta Timur, Indonesia 2 Univeritas Negeri Jakarta Culture Collection (UNJCC), Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Jakarta, Rawamangun, Indonesia 3 Faculty of Biology, Universitas Jenderal Soedirman, Purwokerto, Jawa Tenggah, Indonesia 4 Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Institut Teknologi Bandung, Bandung, Jawa Barat, Indonesia 5 Institute of Bioproduct Development, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Skudai, Johor Bahru, Malaysia 6 City of Scientifc Research and Technology Applications, New Burg Al Arab, Alexandria, Egypt