Characterization of a new toxin from the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae: the ribotoxin anisoplin

Metarhizium anisopliae is an entomopathogenic fungus relevant in biotechnology with applications like malaria vector control. Studies of its virulence factors are therefore of great interest. Fungal ribotoxins are toxic ribonucleases with extraordinary efficiency against target ribosomes and suggested as potential insecticides. Here, we describe this ribotoxin characteristic activity in M. anisopliae cultures. Anisoplin has been obtained as a recombinant protein and further characterized. It is structurally similar to hirsutellin A, the ribotoxin from the entomopathogen Hirsutella thompsonii. Moreover, anisoplin shows the ribonucleolytic activity typical of ribotoxins and cytotoxicity against insect cells. How Metarhizium uses this toxin and possible applications are on perspective.

Economic contribution of Chinese caterpillar fungus to the livelihoods of mountain communities in Nepal

Harvesting of Chinese caterpillar fungus, one of the most expensive biological commodities in the world, has become an important livelihood strategy for mountain communities of Nepal. However, very little is known about the role of Chinese caterpillar fungus in household economy. We estimated the economic contribution of Chinese caterpillar fungus to the household income, quantified the extent of "Chinese caterpillar fungus dependence" among households with different economic and social characteristics, and assessed the role of cash income from the Chinese caterpillar fungus harvest in meeting various household needs including education, debt payments, and food security. Results show that Chinese caterpillar fungus income is the second largest contributor to the total household income after farm income with 21.1% contribution to the total household income and 53.3% to the total cash income. The contribution of Chinese caterpillar fungus income to total household income decreases as the household income increases making its contribution highest for the poorest households. There is significant correlation between Chinese caterpillar fungus dependency and percentage of family members involved in harvesting, number of food-sufficient months, and total income without Chinese caterpillar fungus income. Income from Chinese caterpillar fungus is helping the poorest to educate children, purchase food, and pay debts. However, reported decline of Chinese caterpillar fungus from its natural habitat might threaten local livelihoods that depend on the Chinese caterpillar fungus in future. Therefore, sustainable management of Chinese caterpillar fungus through partnership among local institutions and the state is critical in conserving the species and the sustained flow of benefits to local communities.

Natural colonization of loggerhead turtle eggs by the pathogenic fungus Fusarium oxysporum

[EN] Sea turtle nests are exposed to different environmental risks that may affect their hatching success. Human exploitation, predation by wild or domestic animals, nest flooding or severe beach erosion or accession are common causes of egg mortality. However, there is very little information about the impact of microorganisms on turtle eggs. We analyzed loggerhead turtle eggs from Boavista Island (Republic of Cabo Verde) which were incubated under different environmental conditions in order to evaluate the presence and impact of fungus. We have isolated Fusarium oxysporum from dead and live eggs after three days of incubation.

Anticancer and antibacterial secondary metabolites from the endophytic fungus Penicillium sp. CAM64 against multi-drug resistant Gram-negative bacteria.

Background: The emergence of multiple-drug resistance bacteria has become a major threat and thus calls for an urgent need to search for new effective and safe anti-bacterial agents. Objectives: This study aims to evaluate the anticancer and antibacterial activities of secondary metabolites from Penicillium sp. , an endophytic fungus associated with leaves of Garcinia nobilis . Methods: The culture filtrate from the fermentation of Penicillium sp. was extracted and analyzed by liquid chromatography– mass spectrometry, and the major metabolites were isolated and identified by spectroscopic analyses and by comparison with published data. The antibacterial activity of the compounds was assessed by broth microdilution method while the anticancer activity was determined by the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay. Results: The fractionation of the crude extract afforded penialidin A-C (1-3), citromycetin (4), p-hydroxyphenylglyoxalaldoxime (5) and brefelfin A (6). All of the compounds tested here showed antibacterial activity (MIC = 0.50 – 128 μg/mL) against Gramnegative multi-drug resistance bacteria, Vibrio cholerae (causative agent of dreadful disease cholera) and Shigella flexneri (causative agent of shigellosis), as well as the significant anticancer activity (LC50 = 0.88 – 9.21 μg/mL) against HeLa cells. Conclusion: The results obtained indicate that compounds 1-6 showed good antibacterial and anticancer activities with no toxicity to human red blood cells and normal Vero cells.

Metabolism of plant polysaccharides by Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, the symbiotic fungus of the leaf-cutting ant Atta sexdens L.

Atta sexdens L, ante feed on the Fungus they cultivate on cut leaves inside their nests. The fungus, Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, metabolizes plant polysaccharides, such as xylan, starch, pectin, and cellulose, mediating assimilation of these compounds lay the ants, This metabolic integration may be an important part of the ant-fungus symbiosis, and it involves primarily xylan and starch, both of which support rapid fungal growth. Cellulose seems to be less important for symbiont nutrition, since it is poorly degraded and assimilated by the fungus. Pectin is rapidly degraded but slowly assimilated by L. gongylophorus, and its degradation may occur so that the fungus can more easily access other polysaccharides in the leaves.

Activity of Ricinus communis (Euphorbiaceae) and ricinine against the leaf-cutting ant Atta sexdens rubropilosa (Hymenoptera : Formicidae) and the symbiotic fungus Leucoagaricus gongylophorus

The focus of this study was the identification of compounds from plant extracts for use in crop protection. This paper reports on the toxic activity of fractions of leaf extracts of Ricinus communis L (Euphorbiaceae) and isolated active compounds in the leaf-cutting ant Atta sexdens rubropilosa Forel and its symbiotic fungus Leucoagaricus gongylophorus (Singer) Moller. The main compounds responsible for activity against the fungus and ant in leaf extracts of R communis were found to be fatty acids for the former and ricinine for the ants. (C) 2004 Society of Chemical Industry.

Nesting biology of the fungus growing ants Mycetarotes Emery (Attini, Formicidae)

Fungus-growing ants of the genus Mycetarotes are among the least studied in the tribe Attini. This report documents nest architecture and worker population numbers for 19 nests of M. parallelus and 5 nests of M. acutus, including the first such report for M. acutus. This new information is integrated with the scant biological information reported on Mycetarotes to date. The resulting picture of Mycetarotes life history, as well as the relative ease with which large numbers of nests can be collected and observed in the field, suggest that Mycetarotes (particularly M. parallelus) is an ideal model system for the study of coevolution of lower-attine ants and their cultivated fungi.

Starch metabolism in Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, the symbiotic fungus of leaf-cutting ants

Leucoagaricus gongylophorus, the symbiotic fungus of the leaf-cutting ants, degrades starch, this degradation being supposed to occur in the plant material which leafcutters forage to the nests, generating most of the glucose which the ants utilize for food. In the present investigation, we show that laboratory cultures of L. gongylophorus produce extracellular alpha-amylase and maltase which degrade starch to glucose, reinforcing that the ants can obtain glucose from starch through the symbiotic fungus. Glucose was found to repress a-amylase and, more severely, maltase activity, thus repressing starch degradation by L. gongylophorus, so that we hypothesize that: (1) glucose down-regulation of starch degradation also occurs in the Atta sexdens fungus garden; (2) glucose consumption from the fungus garden by A. sexdens stimutates degradation of starch from plant material by L. gongylophorus, which may represent a mechanism by which Leafcutters can control enzyme production by the symbiotic fungus. Since glucose is found in the fungus garden inside the nests, down-regulation of starch degradation by glucose is supposed to occur in the nest and play a part in the control of fungal enzyme production by leafcutters. (c) 2005 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Synthetic amides toxic to the leaf-cutting ant Atta sexdens rubropilosa L. and its symbiotic fungus

1 Nine synthetic amides similar to natural N-piperidine-3-(4,5-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-(E)-propenainide and N-pyrrolidine-3-(4,5-methylenedyoxiphenyl)2-(E)-propenamide were synthesized and identified by their spectroscopic data.2 the toxicity of these synthetic amides to the Atta sexdens rubropilosa workers and the antifungal activity against Leticoagaricus gongylophorus, the symbiotic fungus of the leaf-cutting ants, were determined.3 Workers ants that were fed daily on an artificial diet to which these compounds were added had a higher mortality rate than the controls for N-pyrrolidine-3(3',4'-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-(E)-propenamide and N-benzyl-3-(3',4'-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-(E)-propenamide at a concentration of 100 mu g/mL.4 the completely inhibition (100%) of the fungal growth was observed with N-piperldine-3-(3',4'-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-(E)-propenamide and N,N-diethyl-3-(3',4'-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-(E)-propenamide at concentrations of 50 and 100 mu g/mL and N-pirrolidine-3-(3',4'-methylenedioxyphenyl)-2-(E)-propenamide at a concentration of 100 mu g/mL.5 the possibility of controlling these insects in the future using synthetic piperamides that can simultaneously target both organisms is discussed.

THE ROLE OF ECTOMYCORRHIZAL FUNGI ON FERTILIZED AND UNFERTILIZED NURSERY GROWN WHITE SPRUCE

Nursery grown seedlings are an essential part of the forestry industry. These seedlings are grown under high nutrient conditions caused by fertilization. Though grown in a controlled environment, symbionts such as ectomycorrhizal fungi (EcMF) are often found in these conditions. To examine the effects of EcMF in these conditions, colonized Picea glauca seedlings were collected from Toumey Nursery in Watersmeet, MI. After collection, the EcMF present were morphotyped, and seedlings with different morphotypes were divided equally into two treatment types- fertilized and unfertilized. Seedlings received treatment for one growing season. After that time, seedlings were collected, ectomycorrhizas identified using morphotyping and DNA sequencing, and seedlings were analyzed for differences in leaf nutrient concentration, content, root to shoot ratio, total biomass, and EcMF community structure. DNA sequencing identified 5 unique species groups- Amphinema sp. 1, Amphinema sp. 5, Thelephora terrestris, Sphaerosporella brunnea, and Boletus variipes. In the unfertilized treatment it was found that Amphinema sp. 1 strongly negatively impacted foliar N concentration. In fertilized seedlings, Thelephora terrestris had a strong negative impact on foliar phosphorus concentration, while Amphinema sp. 1 positively impacted foliar boron, magnesium, manganese, and phosphorus concentration. In terms of content, Amphinema sp. 1 led to significantly higher content of manganese and boron in fertilized treatments, as well as elevated phosphorus in unfertilized seedlings. Amphinema sp. 5 had a significant negative effect on phosphorus content. When examining root to shoot ratio and biomass, those seedlings with more non-mycorrhizal tips had a higher root to shoot ratio. Findings from the study shed light on the interactions of the species. Amphinema sp. 5 shows very different functionality than Amphinema sp. 1. Amphinema sp. 1 appears to have the highest positive effect on seedling nutrition when in both fertilized and unfertilized environments. Amphinema sp. 5 and T. terrestris appear to behave parasitically in both fertilized and unfertilized conditions.

Characterization of a new toxin from the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae: the ribotoxin anisoplin

Metarhizium anisopliae is an entomopathogenic fungus relevant in biotechnology with applications like malaria vector control. Studies of its virulence factors are therefore of great interest. Fungal ribotoxins are toxic ribonucleases with extraordinary efficiency against target ribosomes and suggested as potential insecticides. Here, we describe this ribotoxin characteristic activity in M. anisopliae cultures. Anisoplin has been obtained as a recombinant protein and further characterized. It is structurally similar to hirsutellin A, the ribotoxin from the entomopathogen Hirsutella thompsonii. Moreover, anisoplin shows the ribonucleolytic activity typical of ribotoxins and cytotoxicity against insect cells. How Metarhizium uses this toxin and possible applications are on perspective.

Exploring the potential of novel biomixtures and Lentinula edodes fungus for the degradation of selected pesticides. Evaluation for use in biobed systems

An approach to reduce the contamination of water sourceswith pesticides is the use of biopurificaction systems. The active core of these systems is the biomixture. The composition of biomixtures depends on the availability of local agro-industrial wastes and design should be adapted to every region. In Portugal, cork processing is generally regarded as environmentally friendly and would be interesting to find applications for its industry residues. In this work the potential use of different substrates in biomixtures, as cork (CBX); cork and straw, coat pine and LECA (Light Expanded Clay Aggregates), was tested on the degradation of terbuthylazine, difenoconazole, diflufenican and pendimethalin pesticides. Bioaugmentation strategies using the white-rot fungus Lentinula edodes inoculated into the CBX, was also assessed. The results obtained from this study clearly demonstrated the relevance of using natural biosorbents as cork residues to increase the capacity of pesticide dissipation in biomixtures for establishing biobeds. Furthermore, higher degradation of all the pesticides was achieved by use of bioaugmented biomixtures. Indeed, the biomixtures inoculated with L. edodes EL1were able to mineralize the selected xenobiotics, revelling that these white-rot fungi might be a suitable fungus for being used as inoculum sources in on-farm sustainable biopurification system, in order to increase its degradation efficiency. After 120 days, maximum degradation of terbuthylazine, difenoconazole, diflufenican and pendimethalin, of bioaugmented CBX, was 89.9%, 75.0%, 65.0% and 99.4%, respectively. The dominant metabolic route of terbuthylazine in biomixtures inoculated with L. edodes EL1 proceeded mainly via hydroxylation, towards production of terbuthylazine-hydroxy-2 metabolite. Finally, sorption process to cork by pesticides proved to be a reversible process,working cork as a mitigating factor reducing the toxicity to microorganisms in the biomixture, especially in the early stages.

Selection of Trichoderma spp. isolates to control the bean white-mold fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum in winter crops.

2007

Identification of a putative gene responsive to the fungus bipolaris maydis in guinea grass

2015