Background

The present invention relates to a plant protection

composition comprising at least one plant protection agent and a mixture for enhancing at least one activity of the plant protection agent. In particular, according to the invention highly efficient synergistic mixtures that, applied as an adjuvans or additive, are used to significantly

increase the efficacy and biocompatibility of conventional plant protection agents for plant protection products. The synergistic mixture thereby allows significant reduction of active ingredients of conventional plant protection products. Prior art

Microbial contaminations in agricultural production cause severe problems and commercial losses. In general

agricultural production world-wide is under the permanent pressure of infections by phytopathogenic viruses, bacteria and fungi. Therefore the use of plant protection agents is essential to secure yield and quality of agricultural

products and to reduce economic losses. The constantly growing world population puts additional pressure on yield and quality of agricultural products as well as on the generation and synthesis of new plant protection agents. A major concern is also the biocompatibility of such plant protection agents and their impact on human health and the environment. In addition existing classical plant protection agents are reduced or even completely blocked in their efficacy by the appearance of resistances developed by adaptations of viruses, bacteria and fungi.

Besides the synthesis and generation of completely new plant protection agents the enhancement of the efficacy of established plant protection products is a suitable

alternative .

Conventional plant protection agents used in well-established plant protection products with a broad spectrum against especially fungi are for example Propamocarb,

Prothioconazole, Curzate, Mancozeb, Chlorothalonil ,

Azoxystrobin and Copperoxychlorid . The listed conventional plant protection products are among the major plant protection products used world-wide against phytopathogenic fungi. The large quantities and the long time of usage of such conventional products bear environmental risks as well as risks concerning the development of

resistances. Therefore the search for synergistic substances that increase the efficacy of conventional plant protection agents as well as the biocompatibility is a major demand and still unsolved problem of current agriculture. A higher efficacy would allow the substantial reduction of the amount of conventional plant protection agents necessary as active ingredients per hectare.

Summary of the invention

It is the object of the invention to overcome the current limitations and disadvantages of the prior art, to provide mixtures that significantly increase the efficacy and

biocompatibility of conventional plant protection agents, and to develop plant protection compositions with reduced amount of plant protection agents.

The object is met by a plant protection composition

comprising at least one plant protection agent and a mixture for enhancing at least one activity of the plant protection agent, wherein said mixture comprises:

a) at least one essential oil,

b) at least one type of organic acid,

c) at least one metal ion, and

d) at least one detergent.

Surprisingly, it was found that plant protection compositions comprising a conventional plant protection agent and a mixture comprising essential oils, organic acids, detergents and metal ions exhibit significant higher antimicrobial activities than the substances alone or incomplete mixtures of them. Accordingly, mixtures comprising essential oils, organic acids, detergents and metal ions, such as those described in EP 2 481 288 Al, surprisingly enhance the activity, i.e. efficacy, of conventional plant protection agents. Moreover, as said mixtures are highly biocompatible and the amount of plant protection agent in the composition can be significantly reduced, biocompatibility of the plant protection composition according to the invention is enhanced as well. Thus, one aspect of the invention is the use of a mixture comprising at least one essential oil, at least one type of organic acid, at least one metal ion, and at least one detergent for enhancing at least one activity of at least one plant protection agent.

Combining conventional plant protection agents with such mixtures enhances the general anti-microbial activity in a way that allows formulations with much lower concentrations of active ingredients from conventional plant protection agents but that are still as effective as the much higher concentrations of the active ingredients in conventional formulations. Lower concentrations of active ingredients also have many other positive effects concerning for example biocompatibility, toxicity, technical applications and commercial aspects.

Accordingly, the invention concerns new synergistic

formulations to generate new plant protection products containing conventional plant protection agents for the treatment of all kind of phytopathogenic microorganisms.

The plant protection agent is, for example, selected from the group consisting of Propamocarb, Prothioconazole, Curzate,

Mancozeb, Chlorothalonil , Azoxystrobin, and Copperoxychlorid .

Advantageously, it is sufficient that the plant protection agent is included in the plant protection composition

according to the invention in concentrations that are about 50% to 80% lower in concentrations than in the conventional product. Depending on the specific conventional plant

protection product the preferred lower concentration of the active ingredients are in the range from 0.001 % to 0.1 % (weight), in particular 0.05 % to 0.01 %, in relation to the total weight of the formulation. Accordingly, lower amounts of plant protection agents in the synergistic composition according to the invention are sufficient to still achieve a significant antimicrobial effect.

In one exemplary embodiment, the essential oil is included in concentrations from 0.005 % to 0.5 % (weight), in particular 0.01 % to 0.05 % (weight), in relation to the total weight of the composition.

The present invention generally relates to formulations with essential oils that are possibly but not exclusively selected from the following plant species as illustrating examples: tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia) oil, Lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) oil, pine (Pinus silvestris) oil, manuka

(Leptospermum scoparium) oil, kanuca (Kunzea ericoides) oil, eucalyptus {Eucalyptus globulus) oil, bergamot (Citrus bergamia) oil, clove [Eugenia caryaphylata) oil, lemon

(Citrus limoneum) oil, lemon grass (Cymbpogon citratus) oil, rosemary (Rosmarinus officialis) oil, geranium (Pelargonium graveoleus) oil, Nimtree (Azadirachta indica) oil, mint oil or any other composition containing menthol and/or menthene or any mixture thereof.

The metal ion can be selected, for example, from the 4th group or sub-groups I, II, or VIII of the periodic table of the elements. The metal ion may be included, for example, in concentrations from 0.0005 % to 0.05 % (weight), in particular 0.005 % to 0.01 % (weight), in relation to the total weight of the composition . The invention-related applied metal ions can be, for example, di- and/or tri-valent ions of metals found in the 4th group and/or sub-group I, II and VIII of the periodic table of the elements, for example, one or several compounds selected from sub-group VIII, especially iron, cobalt, nickel, copper or zinc. They can be used as salts in combination with their organic and/or inorganic acids and bases.

The detergent may be included in concentrations from 0.005 % to 0.05 % (weight), in particular 0.01 % to 0.05 % (weight), in relation to the total weight of the composition.

The efficacy and biocompatibility of the plant protection composition according to the invention can be most notably increased if the plant protection agent and the detergent are included at a molar ratio of approximately 3:1.

The detergent may be at least one compound selected from the group consisting of anionic, amphoteric or cationic tensides, and suitable mixtures thereof.

The inventively applied detergents (i.e. surface-active substances) may be anionic, amphoteric or cationic tensides or suitable mixtures thereof. Especially, alkylethersulfate, alkyl- and/or arylsulfonate, alkylsulfate, amphotensides , betaines, alkylamidoalkylamines , alkyl substituted amino acids, alkyl substituted imino acids, acylated amino acids, and amphotenside combinations can be used. In principle all tensides supporting a positive synergistic effect are

suitable .

In one exemplary embodiment, the organic acid can be included in concentrations from 0.005 % to 0.5 % (weight), in

particular 0.01 % to 0.05 % (weight), in relation to the total volume of the composition.

The organic acids that may be used in preparing plant

protection compositions of the present invention are either solid or liquid in their natural state and are readily soluble or dissolved in or miscible with water or an aqueous based solvent. Exemplary acids include the organic acids, especially the carboxylic acids such as citric acid, valeric acid, itaconic acid, acetic, citriconic acid, lactic acid, malic acid, succinic acid, aldaric acid, malonic acid, proprionic acid, malonic acid, maleic acid, salicylic acid, glutaric acid, tartaric acids, benzoic acid and the like. For example, the plant protection composition according to the invention comprising conventional plant protection agents, essential oils, metal ions, detergents (surface- active substances) and organic acids for effective

antimicrobial action according to the invention may include: plant protection agent: 0.05% - 0.01%

detergent: 0.05 % - 0.01 %

organic acid: 0.05 %- 0.01 %

essential oils: 0.05 % to 0.01 %

di- or tri-valent metal ions : 0.01 % to 0.005 %.

In order to further enhance the activity of the plant protection composition according to the invention, the molar ratio of conventional plant protection agents and detergents can be adjusted to about 3:1.

The plant protection composition according to the invention may further comprise, for example, additives, adjuvans, sticking or wetting agents and/or buffer substances,

especially in order to render the composition suitable for specific applications.

Accordingly, the invention-related formulation may comprise additional common conventional adjuvans and additives like, for example, suitable sticking and wetting agents or buffer substances for defining a specific pH value.

If necessary, the pH value of the formulations according to the invention can be adjusted to a pH between 2 and 5 by the addition of suitable acids or buffer systems. The ready-to-use plant protection product composition

according to the invention can be used for all aspects of agricultural plant protection. The plant protection composition according to the invention can be provided, for example, as a lOOxfold to 10,000xfold concentrate. For example, concentrated formulations of lOOxfold to 10,000xfold may be used for production and shipment .

In general, plant protection is achieved by spraying the composition according to the invention onto plants. The applied methods are however variable and can be adjusted to the different tasks.

According to one aspect of the invention, a method for treatment of a surface of a plant comprises the following steps: applying a composition to the surface, wherein said composition comprises at least one plant protection agent, at least one type of essential oil, at least one detergent, at least one metal ion, and at least one organic acid.

The object is also met by the use of a synergistic

composition comprising at least one essential oil, at least one type of organic acid, at least one metal ion, and at least one detergent for enhancing at least one activity of at least one plant protection agent. According to the invention, a composition or mixture as described herein is provided, which significantly enhances at least one activity of at least one plant protection agent so that efficacy and

biocompatible of a plant protection agent comprising said plant protection agent and said mixture can be significantly increased . According to one aspect of the invention, a method for producing a plant protection composition is provided, wherein a mixture is added to at least one plant protection agent, said mixture comprising at least one type of essential oil, at least one detergent, at least one metal ion, and at least one organic acid.

In one embodiment of the aforementioned use or method, the plant protection agent can be selected, for example, from the group consisting of Propamocarb, Prothioconazole, Curzate,

Mancozeb, Chlorothalonil , Azoxystrobin, and Copperoxychlorid .

In the following, the invention is exemplarily illustrated in detail with reference to the figures and tables.

Brief description of the tables and drawings

Table 1 shows selected conventional fungicides tested for synergistic activities and their abbreviations used in the figures and legends.

Table 2 shows selected mixtures (Ml - M7) and concentrations of ingredients that are applied as additives or adjuvans in the listed tests for synergistic enhancement of the antimicrobial activities of conventional plant protection agents .

Table 3 shows the summary of synergistic effects determined in tests with Candida parapsilosis and spores of Aspergillus niger for mixtures with conventional plant protection agents.

Figure 1A+B shows the control of mixtures (Ml - M7) listed in table 2 for insufficient antimicrobial activities against A) Candida parapsilosis (C. p.) and B) spores of Aspergillus niger (A. n .) .

Figure 2 shows the antimicrobial activities against Candida parapsilosis of conventional plant protection agents (listed in table 1) alone and the synergistic effect in combination with mixtures Ml (listed in table 2) .

Figure 3 shows the antimicrobial activities against Candida parapsilosis of conventional plant protection agents (listed in table 1) alone and the synergistic effect in combination with mixture M2 (listed in table 2) .

Figure 4 shows antimicrobial activities against Candida parapsilosis of conventional plant protection agents F3 - F5 (listed in table 1) at different concentrations and the synergistic effect in combinations with mixture Ml (listed in table 2 ) . Figure 5 shows anti-fungal activities against spores of Aspergillus niger of conventional plant protection agents (listed in table 1) alone and the synergistic effect in combination with mixture M2 (listed in table 2) . Figure 6 shows anti-fungal activities against 10 ³ spores of Aspergillus niger in each sample of conventional plant protection agents Fl to F4 (listed in table 1) alone and the synergistic effect in combination with mixtures Ml to M7 (listed in table 2) . Description of exemplary and preferred embodiments

A specific in vitro test system was designed with certified tester strains from Candida parapsilosis (DSM 70125) and spores from Aspergillus niger (DSM 1957) to define

antimicrobial activities and synergistic effects. In all experiments freshly grown cultures of the listed

microorganisms were adjusted to a cell number of about 10 ⁵ in a 200 μΐ volume of the test solutions. Test solutions are in general: a) sterile water (¾0) as a negative control, b) conventional plant protection agent alone c) specific

mixtures of essential oils, detergents, metal ions and organic acids, d) a plant protection composition according to the invention.

After a residence time of 15 min. (Candia parapsilosis) or 60 min. (Aspergillus niger) at room temperature the 200 μΐ samples containing the microorganisms and the test solutions were diluted and were plated in dilutions of 0 , 10 ^_1 and 10 ^~2 with aliquots of 10 μΐ each onto growth media. After an incubation period of 2 - 5 days at 30°C the grown colonies were determined and documented by digital photography.

In test samples with sterile water (¾0) , the conventional fungicides (Fl - F7) or mixtures of essential oils, metal ions, detergent and organic acid (Ml - M7) all microorganisms survived. Samples treated with the complete synergistic plant protection composition according to the invention did show substantial reduction of living cell colonies, indicating that under these conditions a higher antimicrobial efficacy was present. Thus it is proven that the different substances alone do not exhibit a special antimicrobial effect and also the mixtures of the components outside the scope of the invention are not effective or do only show a limited effect. Surprisingly, the plant protection compositions according to the invention show significantly enhanced antimicrobial efficacies . Figure 1A+B shows the control of mixtures (Ml - M7) listed in table 2 for insufficient antimicrobial activities against A) Candida parapsilosis (C. p.) and B) Aspergillus niger ( A. n.) . As it becomes apparent from Figure 1A+B mixtures Ml to M7 with the specific ingredients and their specific

concentrations do not have sufficient antimicrobial

activities against Candida or Aspergillus .

Figure 2 shows the beneficial effect of different

compositions according to exemplary embodiments of the invention on suspension cultures of Candida parapsilosis . Conventional plant protection agents Fl to F7 (listed in table 1) alone do not show sufficient antimicrobial

activities against Candida parapsilosis . The combinations of plant protection agents Fl to F7 with mixtures Ml (listed in table 2) show synergistic effects. A digital image of the growth plate was taken after incubation. Spots showing no or only reduced growth of Candida colonies represent

compositions having enhanced anti-microbial properties. Figure 3 shows the beneficial effect of different

compositions according to exemplary embodiments of the invention on suspension cultures of Candida parapsilosis . Conventional plant protection agents Fl to F7 (listed in table 1) alone do not show sufficient antimicrobial

activities against Candida parapsilosis . The combinations of plant protection agents Fl to F7 with mixtures M2 (listed in table 2) show synergistic effects. A digital image of the growth plate was taken after incubation. Spots showing no or only reduced growth of Candida colonies represent compositions having enhanced anti-microbial properties.

Figure 4 shows the beneficial effect of different

compositions according to exemplary embodiments of the invention on suspension cultures of Candida parapsilosis . Conventional plant protection agents F3, F4 and F5 (listed in table 1) alone do not show sufficient antimicrobial

activities against Candida parapsilosis at the listed three different concentrations (0.05%, 0.025%, 0.01%). The

combinations of plant protection agents F3, F4 and F5 with mixtures Ml (listed in table 2) show synergistic effects for all three different concentrations. A digital image of the growth plate was taken after incubation. Spots showing no or only reduced growth of Candida colonies represent

compositions having enhanced anti-microbial properties. As it becomes apparent from Figure 4, the general efficiency of antimicrobial action of conventional plant protection

products is enhanced by the addition of components of the synergistic mixtures, i.e. lower concentrations of

conventional plant protection products are effective only with synergistic mixtures. With synergistic mixtures the amount of conventional plant protection agents can be

substantially and advantageously reduced in the formulations. The magnitude of enhancement of activity is specific for each conventional plant protection agent.

Figure 5 shows the beneficial effect of different

compositions according to exemplary embodiments of the invention on suspension cultures of spores from Aspergillus niger. Conventional plant protection agents Fl to F7 (listed in table 1) alone do not show sufficient antimicrobial activities against Aspergillus spores. The combinations of plant protection agents Fl to F7 with mixtures M2 (listed in table 2) show synergistic effects. A digital image of the growth plate was taken after incubation. Spots showing no or only reduced growth of Aspergillus myceles represent

compositions having enhanced anti-microbial properties.

Figure 6 shows the beneficial effect of different

compositions according to exemplary embodiments of the invention on suspension cultures of spores from Aspergillus niger with concentrations of 10 ³ spores in each sample.

Conventional plant protection agents Fl to F4 (listed in table 1) alone do not show sufficient antimicrobial

activities against Aspergillus spores. The combinations of plant protection agents Fl to F4 with mixtures Ml to M7 (listed in table 2) show synergistic effects. A digital image of the growth plate was taken after incubation. Spots showing no or only reduced growth of Aspergillus myceles represent compositions having enhanced anti-microbial properties.

Table 1

Selected conventional fungicides tested for synergistic activities and their abbreviations (Fl - F7) used in the figures and legends.

Fl Propamocarb

F2 Prothioconazole

F3 Curzate

F4 Mancozeb

F5 Chlorothalonil

F6 Azoxystrobin

F7 Copperoxychlorid

Table 2

Table 2

Table 3

Table 3 concentration synergistic without sufficient effect in mixtures antimicrobial

activity

F1 : Propamocarb 0.05% +

F2: Prothioconazole 0.05% +

F3: Curzate 0.01 % +++

F4: Mancozeb 0.05% +++

F5: Chlorothalonil 0.05% ++

F6: Azoxystrobin 0.07% +

F7: Copperoxychlorid 0.05% ++

Classification of synergistic effect:

+ = low but significant

++ = good

+++ = very good