Abstract
Ginseng root is an economically valuable crop in Canada at high risk of yield loss caused by the pathogenic fungus Ilyonectria mors-panacis, formerly known as Cylindrocarpon destructans. While this pathogen has been well-characterized from morphological and genetic perspectives, little is known about the secondary metabolites it produces and their role in pathogenicity. We used an untargeted tandem liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS)-based approach paired with global natural products social molecular networking (GNPS) to compare the metabolite profiles of virulent and avirulent Ilyonectria strains. The ethyl acetate extracts of 22 I. mors-panacis strains and closely related species were analyzed by LC-MS/MS. Principal component analysis of LC-MS features resulted in two distinct groups, which corresponded to virulent and avirulent Ilyonectria strains. Virulent strains produced more types of compounds than the avirulent strains. The previously reported I. mors-panacis antifungal compound radicicol was present. Additionally, a number of related resorcyclic acid lactones (RALs) were putatively identified, namely pochonins and several additional derivatives of radicicol. Pochonins have not been previously reported in Ilyonectria spp. and have documented antimicrobial activity. This research contributes to our understanding of I. mors-panacis natural products and its pathogenic relationship with ginseng.
Highlights
Ginseng root has long been used as a traditional oriental medicine
We chose Ilyonectria and Neonectria strains that were previously investigated by both Seifert et al [6] and Cabral et al [5]
Principal component analysis (PCA) was performed using metabolite peak areas acquired with liquid chromatography high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-High resolution MS (HRMS)) in both negative and positive ionization modes
Summary
Ginseng root has long been used as a traditional oriental medicine. This is evidenced by the global ginseng market, valued at over two billion dollars [1]. The main species cultivated in Canada is Panax quinquefolius, or American ginseng [2]. Ginseng cultivation requires cool temperatures, low light, and moist soil [2]. These are ideal growth conditions for several phylogenetically-delimited species of fungal pathogens, all formerly classified in a broadly-defined species called Cylindrocarpon destructans but classified in the genera
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