Abstract
ABSTRACT We studied the fungal endophyte community of the leaves of Myracrodruon urundeuva in Brazil along with their potential to produce L-asparaginase. In total, 187 endophytes were isolated. The colonization rate of leaf fragments from caatinga (10.41 %) was lower than those from brejo de altitude (39.58 %). Sequences of ITS rDNA from all endophytes revealed relationships with Ascomycota (Botryosphaeriales, Chaetothyriales, Diaporthales, Eurotiales, Glomerellales, Hypocreales, and Pleosporales) and Basidiomycota (Polyporales). The most frequent endophytes were members of the genus Diaporthe. Talaromyces was an indicator genus for caatinga while Phyllosticta, Diaporthe, and Colletotrichum were for brejo de altitude. The composition of endophytic fungi in caatinga and brejo de altitude differed significantly, its richness and diversity (H' = 3.41) being significantly higher in brejo de altitude. Diaporthe sp. URM 7793 was the best producer of L-asparaginase (2.41 U/g), followed by Diaporthe sp. URM 7779 (2.00 U/g), Talaromyces sp. URM 7785 (1.91 U/g), and Diaporthe sp. URM 7792 (1.47 U/g). The composition of endophytic fungi assemblages is strongly influenced by the type of ecosystem. In its natural habitat, M. urundeuva harbors an important diversity of endophytes, which could be used to produce L-asparaginase.
Highlights
Endophytic fungi coexist with their hosts without causing damage to them, contributing to adequate conditions for survival under environmental stresses, such as high temperatures and nutrient scarcity in arid environments (Khidir et al 2010)
We aimed to investigate the diversity of endophytic fungi in the leaves of the medicinal plant M. urundeuva growing in two Brazilian ecosystems and investigate their capacity to produce the enzyme L-asparaginase
To confirm the results obtained in the BLASTn searches, phylogenetic analyses based on Maximum Likelihood (ML) and Bayesian Inference (BI) were performed, which showed the presence of endophytes belonging to seven orders in Ascomycota (Botryosphaeriales, Chaetothyriales, Diaporthales, Eurotiales, Glomerellales, Hypocreales, and Pleosporales) and one order in Basidiomycota (Polyporales) (Fig. 1)
Summary
Endophytic fungi coexist with their hosts without causing damage to them, contributing to adequate conditions for survival under environmental stresses, such as high temperatures and nutrient scarcity in arid environments (Khidir et al 2010). The relationship between endophytes and their respective plant hosts may increase in complexity if the hosts are medicinal plants (Zhao et al.2011; Venieraki et al 2017) The first such compound was “Taxol” a substance produced by the endophyte Taxomyces andreanae isolated from the medicinal plant Taxus brevifolia (Stierle et al 1993), which brought with it great benefits to the study of anticancer substances. In Brazil, the presence of this species has been verified mainly in the tropical dry forest (Caatinga forest) and in high altitude areas that comprise fragments of the Atlantic Forest in the middle of a semiarid region These ecosystems are called brejos de altitude (a montane rainforest). Myracrodruon urundeuva presents great versatility—its branches and leaves have innumerable medicinal properties, mainly anti-inflammatory, antiulcerogenic, and cicatrizant activities—and some scientific research has investigated these potentialities (Mahmoud et al 2011)
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