Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus flavus are frequently reported fungal pathogens known to cause infections in food materials. Fungal growth on the food materials leads to nutritional loss and food spoilage. Consumption of these food materials can cause severe complications and diseases in humans. Antifungal agents are commonly administered to check fungal growth. Knowing the importance of food materials in daily life, we have studied the antibiotic resistance pattern of A. flavus and A. niger infecting various food materials. The fungal pathogens were isolated from various sources and phenotypically confirmed. The susceptibility of the isolates was tested using Itraconazole, Ketaconazole and Amphotericin B. The isolates showed varying degrees of antibiotic resistance resulting in moderate zone of inhibitions against the antifungal agents and MIC values were in the range from 0.008 to 0.032 for A. flavus and A. niger when tested with Itraconazole and Ketaconazole. The study predicts the importance of biodiversity and environmental issues in the developmental resistance of food-borne fungal pathogens towards standard antifungal agents and warrants prophylactic measures to be taken to eradicate fungal infections of food sources for economic benefits and health issues.
