Search

Background: Marine fungi are considered as a promising source of pharmacologically important extracts and compounds owing to the new chemical structures that they can synthesize due to the environmental conditions of their habitat. The aim of this work is to evaluate the free radical scavenging capacity of methanolic extracts from marine fungi and their relationship to their total phenolic content. For this, the radical tests ABTS, DPPH, and Galvinoxyl were used, comparing these results with the antioxidant Trolox as reference. The total phenol content was quantified using the Folin-Ciocalteu method. All data were analyzed by ANOVA followed by Tukey's post hoc tests (p

In this bioprospecting study the biological activities of extracts of the in vitro culture of Ganoderma Mexican strains were evaluated. The extracts were tested by the Sulforhodamine B staining method for antiproliferative activity and the plate microdilution method for antibacterial activity. Extracts that proved bioactive in these two activities, the antioxidant activity (Galvinoxyl, ABTS, and DPPH) and total phenolic contents (Folin-Ciocalteu) were additionally determined, as well as acute toxicity (Artemia franciscana). In the antiproliferative activity Ganoderma curtisii strain (GH-16-015) obtained a remarkable value of GI50 ≤ 50 µg/mL against tumor lines: A549, HBL-100, HeLa, and T-47D. G. curtisii strains (GH-16-012 and GH-16-015) showed MIC values = 500 µg/mL against Staphylococcus aureus. G. curtisii strain (GH-16-012) almost reduced by 50% the radical Galvinoxyl. Finally, G. curtisii strain (GH-16-023) presented the lowest level of toxicity with a LC50 of 490.881 µg/mL against A. franciscana. These results support the potential medicinal effects of Mexican strains of G. curtisii.

In this bioprospecting study the biological activities of extracts of the in vitro culture of Ganoderma Mexican strains were evaluated. The extracts were tested by the Sulforhodamine B staining method for antiproliferative activity and the plate microdilution method for antibacterial activity. Extracts that proved bioactive in these two activities, the antioxidant activity (Galvinoxyl, ABTS, and DPPH) and total phenolic contents (Folin-Ciocalteu) were additionally determined, as well as acute toxicity (Artemia franciscana). In the antiproliferative activity Ganoderma curtisii strain (GH-16-015) obtained a remarkable value of GI(50) ≤ 50 µg/mL against tumor lines: A549, HBL-100, HeLa, and T-47D. G. curtisii strains (GH-16-012 and GH-16-015) showed MIC values = 500 µg/mL against Staphylococcus aureus. G. curtisii strain (GH-16-012) almost reduced by 50% the radical Galvinoxyl. Finally, G. curtisii strain (GH-16-023) presented the lowest level of toxicity with a LC(50) of 490.881 µg/mL against A. franciscana. These results support the potential medicinal effects of Mexican strains of G. curtisii.

Fungi have been recognized as a prolific source of bioactive compounds with a wide spectrum of bioactivities, nevertheless, the information about marine polar fungi is scarce. Due to this fact, the purpose of this study was to investigate the antiproliferative activity and antioxidant capacity of the extracts of three fungal strains isolated from the White Sea (Coprinellus diseminatus, Simplicillium lamellicola and Akanthomyces muscarius). The antiproliferative activity test was carried out by the SRB method and the cell lines tested were A549, HBL-100, HeLa, SW1573, T-47D and WiDr. The antioxidant capacity was measured employing the ABTS and galvinoxyl methods. The strain that showed the most antiproliferative activity was A. muscarius; it demonstrated activity in all the extracts tested, at least against two of the six tested cell lines, also the biomass ethanolic extract and the culture broth ethyl acetate extract of Coprinellus diseminatus showed antiproliferative activity against some of the tested cell lines. In the antioxidant capacity test, the ethyl acetate extracts of the culture broth of the three strains showed more activity. This indicates that arctic marine-derived fungi are capable to produce bioactive metabolites with antiproliferative activity and antioxidant capacity, comparable to other marine-derived fungi, and in some cases even more active than known medicinal mushrooms.

It is well known that marine fungi are an excellent source of biologically active secondary metabolites, and by 2011, it was reported that over 400 bioactive metabolites were derived from marine fungi.This study establishes the basis for future research on antiproliferative compounds of marine endophytes inhabited in the Veracruz Reef System.Isolation of the 34 fungal strains was carried out by microbiological method from samples of sponges, corals, and other biological material from the Veracruz Reef System. The fungal biomass and broth were separated and extracted with a mixture of solvents MeOH:CHCl3. Characterization and molecular identification of the fungal strains were performed through microbiological methods and the analysis of the ITS-rDNA regions. Antiproliferative activity was tested at a dose of 250 μg/mL on human solid tumor cell lines HBL-100, HeLa, SW1573, T-47D, and WiDr by the SRB assay after 48 h-exposure to the fungal extracts.The extracts from five isolates showed an antiproliferative effect against one or more of the tested cell lines (percentage growth50%). The mycelial extract from the isolate LAEE 03 manifested the highest activity against the five cell lines (% PG of 17 HBL-100, 19 HeLa, 23 SW1573, -6 T-47D, and 10 WiDr) and the strain was identified as Curvularia trifolii (Kauffman) Boedijn (Pleosporaceae).The results obtained indicate that the extract from a marine derived C. trifolii has the antiproliferative effect, thus suggesting that this organism is a good candidate for further analysis of its metabolites.

Antecedentes: Las especies de hormigas cortadoras de hojas (Atta y Acromirmex) presentan una relación mutualista con el hongo basidiomycete Leucoagaricus gongylophorus. Esta relación es crucial para los ciclos de vida tanto de las hormigas como para el hongo.Objetivos: Debido a que no existen reportes sobre el aislamiento in vitro del hongo cultivado por la hormiga Atta mexicana, este trabajo tuvo como objetivo el aislamiento in vitro e identificación de L. gongylophorus a partir del jardín de hongo de la hormiga A. mexicana.Métodos: La identificación del hongo cultivado por la hormiga se llevó a cabo mediante la observación de las características macro y microscópicas, así como un análisis molecular y filogenético usando la región ITS del ADNr.Resultados y conclusión: El ADN aislado presentó un 99% de identidad con lo reportado para L. gongylophorus y es comparable con otros aislamientos fúngicos de los nidos de otras especies de la tribu Attini como Atta y Acromyrmex. Debido a ello, este trabajo es el primer reporte del aislamiento in vitro e identificación de L. gongylophorus a partir de nidos de A. mexicana.

In our search for quorum-sensing (QS) disrupting molecules, 75 fungal isolates were recovered from reef organisms (endophytes), saline lakes and mangrove rhizosphere. Their QS inhibitory activity was evaluated in Chromobacterium violaceum CVO26. Four strains of endophytic fungi stood out for their potent activity at concentrations from 500 to 50 μg mL−1. The molecular characterization, based on the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region sequences (ITS1, 5.8S and ITS2) between the rRNA of 18S and 28S, identified these strains as belonging to four genera: Sarocladium (LAEE06), Fusarium (LAEE13), Epicoccum (LAEE14), and Khuskia (LAEE21). Interestingly, three came from coral species and two of them came from the same organism, the coral Diploria strigosa. Metabolic profiles obtained by Liquid Chromatography-High Resolution Mass Spectrometry (LC-HRMS) suggest that a combination of fungal secondary metabolites and fatty acids could be the responsible for the observed activities. The LC-HRMS analysis also revealed the presence of potentially new secondary metabolites. This is, to the best of our knowledge, the first report of QS inhibition by marine endophytic fungi.

In this paper the isolation and structure analysis of three sterols and brefeldin-A from the mycelial extract of the liquid fermentation of fungus Curvularia trifolii isolated from the marine sponge Amphimedon compressa collected from the Coral Reef System of Veracruz is reported. This is the first report on the production of brefeldin-A by the fungus C. trifolii. The results on isolation biological activity support the importance of the conservation of the Mexican ecosystems of coral reefs as a source of microorganisms with a pharmaceutical potential.