Currently, farmers rely heavily on fungicides to manage fungal pathogens in agriculture. However, the extensive use of synthetic fungicides poses several challenges, including the development of resistant pathogens and detrimental effects on the environment, human health and animal well-being. Recently, nanotechnology has gained prominence in agriculture, food, pharmacology, and biomedical engineering, enabling a wide range of innovative applications. One of the main attractions of nanotechnology in agriculture is its potential to reduce the reliance on chemical fungicides while improving crop yields through optimized control of fungal phytopathogens. Chitosan-based compounds offer a promising approach for creating effective and safe nano-biofungicides for modern plant protection strategies, overcoming the limitations of synthetic fungicides through enhanced stability, water dispersion, and controlled release. This review highlights the potential of chitosan nanoparticles loaded with essential oils for managing fungal phytopathogens and explores the formulation techniques for these nanoparticle-based systems. It examines the beneficial characteristics of chitosan as a matrix for encapsulating plant essential oils in nano-biofungicide production. Furthermore, it reviews recent advances in the application of chitosan nanoparticles loaded with plant essential oils against fungal phytopathogens, highlighting their potential as a sustainable alternative to traditional chemical fungicides. Bibliometric patterns and research trends derived from Scopus data are analyzed to identify emerging research themes and existing knowledge gaps in the development of chitosan-based nano-biofungicides. Finally, it outlines the challenges and future research trends in the development of chitosan-based nano-biofungicides.
Soleimani et al. (Fri,) studied this question.