Antimicrobial Potential of Crude Extract of Curvularia lunata, an Endophytic Fungi Isolated from Cymbopogon caesius

K S Avinash,H S Ashwini,Y L Krishnamurthy,H N Ramesh Babu

doi:10.1155/2015/185821

Abstract

Cymbopogon caesius grass is an aromatic tall grass species which grows in waste field and along the edges of crop fields in Karnataka. From this grass fungal endophytes were isolated on PDA medium and identified as Curvularia lunata. The fungus was cultured on Potato Dextrose broth for production of fungal metabolites. Ethyl acetate extract of the C. lunata was obtained by liquid-liquid partition of broth of endophyte and evaporation. Dried crude extract was tested for antimicrobial activity by agar well diffusion method. The extract showed antimicrobial nature against all the test pathogens. Crude extract of C. lunata is highly active against Staphylococcus aureus with the inhibition percentage of 92 and Candida albicans with 81 percent inhibition.

Highlights

A number of plant species have been examined, and it is projected that there are more than one million endophytic fungi in association with many plants existing in nature [1]
Endophytes are microbes often bacteria or fungi living within a plant at least for part of their life without causing any apparent negative effects
The main objective of this study is to isolate the endophytic fungi from the grass and to evaluate the possibilities of production of fungal metabolites for testing of antimicrobial activity

Summary

Introduction

A number of plant species have been examined, and it is projected that there are more than one million endophytic fungi in association with many plants existing in nature [1]. It is likely that a huge array of fungi interacts with plants. Endophytes are microbes often bacteria or fungi living within a plant at least for part of their life without causing any apparent negative effects. They reside inside the tissues of most the healthy plants. A wide diversity of fungi was isolated from healthy tissues of most terrestrial and aquatic plants and red and brown algae. Fungi are present in most plant parts [2]

Objectives

Methods

Results