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Russian and international publications on the antiviral activity of medicinal mushrooms against influenza, which have been studied in cell culture and animal models, on the presence of sialidase (neuraminidase) inhibitors and RNA polymerase inhibitors of influenza virus are considered. The activity against influenza of both aqueous extracts of higher fungi and the polysaccharides, peptidoglycans, proteins, melanin, polyphenols, and terpenoids present in them is described. It is noted that further studies of the antiviral mechanisms of these components of medicinal mushrooms, both those grown in natural conditions and those cultivated with solid-phase or submerged methods in laboratory and factory conditions, are required in order to develop drugs based on them.

Introduction . One of the most urgent problem of modern medicine is the fight against the disease caused by the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) – HIV infection. The chemical compounds have improved the situation for infected people, but they are toxic, disrupt the metabolism and cannot eliminate the integrated virus from the body. The emergence of resistant HIV strains makes these treatments ineffective. Often, the death of HIV-infected people occurs as a result of the development of opportunistic infections caused by viruses of the Herpesviridae family. Therefore, the search for new therapeutic and preventive drugs that are less toxic and active against several viruses at the same time is relevant. Basidiomycetes , higher fungi, are a source of medicinal compounds that have antimicrobial properties, as well as antiviral ones. Humic compounds (HS) of various nature also have antiviral activity. The aim of the study was to obtain nontoxic compounds from the basidiomycete Inonotus obliquus and humic compounds from brown coals and to test their activity against viruses that are pathogenic to humans: HIV and Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV). Material and methods . The antiviral activity of melanin extracts obtained from the culture of the chaga fungus Inonotus obliquus and HS from the brown coal of the Kansko-Achinsk Deposit was studied using a model of MT-4 lymphoblastoid cells infected with HIV type 1 (HIV–1) strains and a monolayer culture of Vero cells infected with HSV type 1 (HSV-1) using virological and statistical research methods. Results and discussion . It was found that all the studied compounds did not have a cytotoxic effect on cells at a concentration of 100 mcg / ml. It was shown that extracts of basidiomycetes and HS have antiviral activity against HIV-1 and HSV-1. EC 50 (50%-effective concentration) for HIV-1 was 3.7–5.0 mcg/ml, selectivity index 28–35. Antiherpetic activity was detected at a dose of 50–100 mcg/ml. The antiviral effectiveness of melanin compounds was established both in the «preventive» (2 hours before cell infection) and in the «therapeutic» regimen of drug administration, both for HIV-1 and HSV-1. The presence of antiviral activity of melanin and HS in relation to the RNA-containing HIV-1 virus and DNA-containing HSV-1 virus in our study coincides with the results of a number of authors in relation to influenza viruses, herpes virus, HIV, hepatitis B virus, Coxsackievirus, smallpox vaccine virus, which suggests that the type of nucleic acid in the virus does not play a fundamental role in the antiviral action of these drugs. It is also clear that HS is effective against both enveloped and non-enveloped viruses. Conclusion . In general, it can be concluded that melanin and humic compounds are characterized by low toxicity in the presence of both virucidal and antiviral activity. This allows us to consider the studied compounds as the basis for creating safe medicines that are effective against pathogens of various viral infections.

Composites of SiO2 and polyphenols from plant raw materials and model composites based on amorphous SiO2 and dihydroquercetin and pyrocatechol were prepared by solid-state mechanochemistry. Results for the antiviral activities of these composites with respect to herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) and West Nile virus are presented and compared with those of several chemotherapeutics and chaga (Inonotus obliquus) extract.

Due to the scarcity of natural rennet, in this study we have considered an option of using in cheesemaking a milk-clotting enzyme produced by the Irpex lacteus fungus. We describe main properties of I. lacteus coagulant: milk-clotting activity (МА), overall proteolytic activity (PA), thermal stability, MА dependence on рН level and calcium ions content. Partially purified preparations of I. lacteus milk-clotting enzyme was obtained by salting out and gel-filtration. Technological properties of the I. lacteus coagulant were compared to natural calf rennet and cow pepsin (CP). МА of I. lacteus enzyme amounted to 29.1 ± 0.7 RU/ml, with protein content of 23 mg/ml. The coagulant was completely inactivated at 60○С. Thermal stability of I. lacteus milk-clotting enzyme, MA sensitivity to pH variations and Ca2+ content were comparable to respective parameters of calf rennet and CP. Overall PA of the I. lacteus coagulant exceeded CP and calf rennet activity by 33 and 220 times, respectively. As for enzymatic specificity, the following order was observed: calf rennet (100%) > CP (14.9%) > I. lacteus coagulant (0.5%). These findings suggest that there is a need to increase the MA of I. lacteus coagulant in order to be able to use it in cheesemaking. We have considered chemical, biochemical, and genetic corrective actions applicable to technological properties of microfungal milk coagulants.

We studied toxicity and antiviral activity of aqueous and ethanol extracts of bioactive substances from the biomass of nematophagous fungus Duddingtonia flagrans prepared by submerged culturing of the mycelium. It is found that both extracts were characterized by low toxicity for cultured Vero cells and inhibited reproduction of DNA-viruses in this cell line. Ethanol extract of the fungus exhibited higher in vitro antiviral activity against Herpes simplex virus type 2, ectromelia virus, and vaccinia virus than water extract, which can be due to higher content of proteins, polysaccharides, flavonols, catechins, or carotenes or more effective their combination. The extracts of cultured mycelium of Duddingtonia flagrans fungus containing a complex of bioactive substances can be used for creation of broad-spectrum antiviral drugs against DNA-viruses.

Quantitative investigation of the factors responsible for trap formation in the nematophagous fungus Duddingtonia flagrans F-882 in submerged liquid culture was carried out. The data obtained suggest a complex program for the regulation of zootrophic nutrition in D. flagrans. Optimal concentrations of such carbon and nitrogen sources as sucrose (0.4%), ammonium ions (0.2%), and tryptone (0.2%) promote trap formation in the case of contact with the nematodes Panagrellus redivivus. Increased concentrations of these compounds, however, inhibit trap formation. The sensitivity of the mycelium to nematode excreta depends on the state of the culture and is increased under limitation by certain nutrient components or in the course of prolonged starvation. A direct correlation was found between the number of caught nematodes and the number of chlamydospores formed on the mycelium. The nutrients obtained from the nematode biomass are used for formation of additional chlamydospores (on average, about 20 chlamydospores per nematode). Environmental and evolutionary aspects of the role of zootrophic nutrition in carnivorous fungi are discussed.

The results of the two-year observation of the atmospheric aerosol fungi concentration and diversity in the south of Western Siberia are presented. It is found that the fungi concentration in samples of atmospheric air can change dramatically: from less than 10 up to several thousands of viable fungi per cubic meter. A total of 18 genera of fungi referring to 3 subdivisions (Zygomycotina, Ascomycotina, and Deuteromycotina) were identified in the samples under study. Among them are representatives of those genera that are potentially pathogenic for human health (e.g., Aspergillus, Cladosporium, Penicillium, Alternaria, Trichoderma, etc.) and those that may be useful in modern biotechnology (e.g., Aspergillus, Aureobasidium, Ganoderma, etc.).

A complex study of oceanic ferromanganese nodules (FMN) from the abyssal Clarion-Clipperton Fracture Zone and Lamont Guyot (Pacific Ocean) is performed. The concentrations of noble and trace elements are determined by AAS, INAA, and RFA-SR. Furthermore, SEM, and activation autoradiography are applied. Experiments are carried out using Pt, Au, and Ir radionuclides (radioisotope indicator method).

The search for the chemical and biomarkers of aerosol originating from the surface microlayer (SML) of water areas of health resort zones at Lake Baikal was performed. The concentrations of Ca, Mg, Na, K, Cu, Zn, Fe, Mn, Al, Ba, Pb, Cd, As, naphthalene, acenaphthene, acenaphthilene, fluorene, phenanthrene, anthracene, fluoranthene, pyrene, benz(a)anthracene, perilene, benz (b) fluoranthene, benz(a) pyrene,1,2,5,6-dibenz anthracene, benz(ghi) perilene, and total protein in aerosols and water samples collected from the region were experimentally studied. A direct close interrelation was revealed between the concentrations of all chemical elements in aerosol and water samples. The highest concentrations were recorded for Ca, Mg, Na, and K. A polymerase chain reaction method was employed to determine the similar interrelation between the genetic materials of microorganisms (bacterioplankton) found in water and aerosol. A completely adequate marker reflecting the presence of aerosol generated by SML of Lake Baikal water was not found.