Isolation and Identification of Endophytic and Spoilage Fungi Associated With Fresh Green Pepper Sold in Gwagwalada Market Abuja

Student: Ni’imat Suleiman Mahamud (Project, 2025)
Department of Microbiology
University of Abuja, Abuja, Fct

Abstract

This study aimed to isolate and identify endophytic and spoilage fungi associated with fresh green peppers (Capsicum annuum) sold in Gwagwalada Market, Abuja. A total of 30 Fresh green peppers (Capsicum annuum) were purchased from random sellers in Gwagwalada market. Fresh and spoilt green pepper samples were determined by the organoleptic characteristics of the samples which include odour, colour and taste. The fragmentation method was employed for fungal isolation, and the identification of fungal species was performed using macroscopic and microscopic observations, with lactophenol cotton blue staining. Two (2) endophytic fungal species, Aspergillus niger and Penicillium sp., and 3 spoilage fungal species Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus flavus and Mucor sp. were isolated from the pepper samples. Among the isolates, Aspergillus niger was the most frequently occurring endophytic fungus (58.3%) and Penicillium sp. the least (41.7%). The most prevalent spoilage fungus was Aspergillus flavus (50.0%), Aspergillus niger (31.25%) and Mucor sp. (18.75%) was the least occurring spoilage fungus. This study highlights the fungal diversity in green peppers from Gwagwalada Market, emphasizing the predominance of Aspergillus niger as a potential concern for food safety.

Keywords
aspergillus spoilage green fungal niger endophytic fresh gwagwalada market pepper
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