Biogenic volatile organic compounds have promising applications in controlling fungal spoilage of postharvest agro-products and perishable foods. In a previous study, we discovered that the plant volatile 1-octanol showed considerable potential for controlling Aspergillus flavus growth. In this study, the inhibitory effects of 1-octanol on the germination of A. flavus spores were investigated. A. flavus spores did not germinate when exposed to 1.5 µL/mL 1-octanol, and 3.5 µL/mL 1-octanol caused spore death. Biochemical analysis showed that 1-octanol caused a decrease in ergosterol and ATP content, and an increase in hydrogen peroxide and superoxide anion content in a dose-dependent manner. Transcriptomic analysis demonstrated that there were 4117 differentially-expressed genes in A. flavus spores exposed to 1.5 µL/mL 1-octanol, mainly enriched in metabolic pathways, steroid biosynthesis, secondary metabolite biosynthesis, ribosomes, glutathione metabolism, the mitogen-activated protein kinases signaling pathway, and pyruvate metabolism. Flow cytometry results showed that 1-octanol treatment resulted in hyperpolarization of the mitochondrial membrane potential, accumulation of reactive oxygen species, and apoptosis. TdT-mediated dUTP nick end labeling/4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole double staining and monodansylcadaverine staining results indicated that 1-octanol treatment resulted in DNA fragmentation and induced autophagy, respectively. These results provide new insights into the inhibitory mechanism of 1-octanol on A. flavus spore gemination and would facilitate the application of 1-octanol for the protection of postharvest agricultural products.

生物挥发性有机化合物在控制采后农产品和易腐食品的真菌腐败方面具有广阔的应用前景。在之前的一项研究中，我们发现植物挥发性 1-辛醇在控制黄曲霉生长方面表现出巨大的潜力。本研究探讨了1-辛醇对黄曲霉孢子萌发的抑制作用。黄曲霉当暴露于1.5 µL/mL 1-辛醇时，孢子不萌发，而3.5 µL/mL 1-辛醇则导致孢子死亡。生化分析表明，1-辛醇导致麦角甾醇和ATP含量降低，过氧化氢和超氧阴离子含量增加，且呈剂量依赖性。转录组分析表明黄曲霉中有4117个差异表达基因暴露于1.5 µL/mL 1-辛醇的孢子，主要富集于代谢途径、类固醇生物合成、次生代谢物生物合成、核糖体、谷胱甘肽代谢、丝裂原激活蛋白激酶信号通路和丙酮酸代谢。流式细胞术结果显示，1-辛醇处理导致线粒体膜电位超极化、活性氧积累和细胞凋亡。TdT 介导的 dUTP 缺口末端标记/4',6-二脒基-2-苯基吲哚双染色和单丹酰尸胺染色结果表明，1-辛醇处理分别导致 DNA 断裂和诱导自噬。这些结果为1-辛醇对黄曲霉的抑制机制提供了新的见解孢子萌发，并有利于 1-辛醇在采后农产品保护中的应用。