Bioactive potentials of the truffle mushrooms Tirmania nivea, Tirmania pinoyi and Tuber indicum

Abstract

Background Truffles are ectomycorrhizal wild mushrooms that have ethnomycological importance as a folklore remedy used to treat different skin and eye diseases and they are currently known as expensive food and potential sources of bioactive compounds. Objective This study aims to investigate the in vitro bioactive potential of the ethyl acetate extracts of three truffle species Tirmania nivea, Tirmania pinoyi, and Tuber indicum collected from Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and China. Results and discussion Inhibition of α-glucosidase was investigated as an indication of the antidiabetic potential of extracts. Tuber indicum extract caused 21.7% inhibition at a concentration of 100ppm. On the other hand, inhibition of nitric oxide is evaluated as a key way to regulate inflammation. Tuber indicum extract at a concentration of 100μg/ml achieved the highest inhibition (50.2%) and had the lowest IC50 (86.0±0.09μg/ml) among tested extracts, while Tirmania pinoyi extract achieved the lowest inhibition (21.7%) with the highest IC50 (104.1±0.12μg/ml). Cell migration was used to evaluate the wound healing activity of extracts. Tirmania pinoyi extract at a concentration of 100μg/ml caused 74.71% wound closure followed by 73.43% and 62.38% by Tuber indicum and Tirmania nivea extracts, respectively. Finally, investigating the antiviral potential of extracts against coxsackie virus B3 revealed that Tirmania pinoyi extract showed the highest virucidal effect and pretreatment antiviral activity while Tuber indicum extract achieved the highest post-treatment antiviral activity. Results achieved by these truffles encourage further investigations to be used as functional foods or as sources of bioactive compounds.