Nutrient and Physiological Requirements for Biomass Production of Pestalotiopsis sp. UMAS P14 and Pseudopestalotiopsis sp. UMAS P2005/2592

Fungi are important decomposers in our ecosystem and are useful in metabolite production, bio-degradation and bio-sorption of different substrates and wastes through their mycelial biomass. Fungal species are known to have different preferences for their growth requirements. Two fungal species Pestalotiopsis and Pseudopestalotiopsis useful in many biotechnological applications were studied. Nutrient and physiological requirements for mycelial biomass production such as carbon and nitrogen, pH, light and temperature were investigated. Both fungal isolates were grown in liquid basal medium supplemented separately with various carbon and nitrogen source and incubated under different light, pH and temperature conditions for 15 days. In general, Pestalotiopsis sp. and Pseudopestalotiopsis sp. showed significant preferences for monosaccharide and disaccharide carbon source as compared to sugar alcohols and polysaccharides, whereas ammonium tartrate was more preferred as a nitrogen source compared to ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulphate and other ammonium salts. These two fungal species were able to grow and produce good mycelial biomass (223.33 mg for Pseudopestalotiopsis and 136.67 mg for Pestalotiopsis) at temperature range of 15°C to 30°C and (290.00 mg for Pseudopestalotiopsis and 256.67 mg for Pestalotiopsis) on media pH of slightly acidic to slightly alkaline. However, they showed no significant preferences between constant light, total darkness and alternate light conditions. The results from this study will be very useful for the mycelial biomass production of Pestalotiopsis sp. and Pseudopestalotiopsis sp. for their biotechnological applications

Identification of volatile secondary metabolites from an endophytic microfungus Aspergillus nomius KUB105 [Pengenalpastian Metabolit Sekunder Meruap daripada Kulat Mikro Endofitik Aspergillus nomius KUB105]

Microfungi are a highly diverse group of micro-organisms and important components of the ecosystem with great potential for diverse metabolite production. During a survey of microfungi on leaves in a National Park in Sarawak, an uncommon endophytic microfungus Aspergillus nomius was encountered. The metabolite production of this microfungus was investigated by growing it in a liquid basal medium for 2 weeks. Gas Chromatography - Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) profiling of the secondary metabolites produced by this microfungus in the liquid medium revealed the presence of 46 different secondary metabolites. The metabolites include saturated hydrocarbons, alkyl halides, alcohols and an unsaturated hydrocarbon. Majority of the metabolites produced were saturated hydrocarbons. Tetracosane, Icosane and 10-Methylicosane were the most abundant metabolites identified while heptadecane and 2,4-dimethylundecane were the least abundant respectively. This study is the first GC-MS and FTIR report of secondary metabolites from A. nomius. The results from this study confirm the ability of microfungi to produce diverse metabolites, including saturated hydrocarbon

In Vitro Cytotoxicity and Antioxidant Activities of Pestalotiopsis microspora Culture Filtrate

Endophytic fungi have been studied to provide protection and survival conditions to their host plant by producing a plethora of substances which, once isolated and characterized, may also have potential for use in industry, agriculture, and medicine. In this study, the culture filtrate of an endophytic fungus (Pestalotiopsis microspora (PM)) was evaluated for its cytotoxic and antioxidant activities in vitro. The cytotoxic activity of PM was determined using brine shrimp lethality assay (BSLA), while its antioxidant effect was investigated against DPPH, reducing power and hydroxyl radicals. Judging by the LC50 value of 2.71 mgmL-1 for the BSLA, the culture filtrate could be considered highly potent. The PM also significantly scavenged free radicals and the effects elicited could be attributed to its phenolics and other phytoconstituents as revealed by the GC-MS results.  It is thereby evident from the data presented that PM is endowed with chemotherapeutic constituents that could be potentially useful for the development of new lead anticancer agents

Phylogenetic position of Nigerian species of Curcuma longa (Zingiberaceae) in the Current Infrageneric Classification

Curcuma longa L. (commonly known as Tumeric) is the only species of the genus Curcuma found in Nigeria. It is of great economic importance to Nigeria, Africa, Asia, and other parts of the world, where it is widely used for ornamental and medicinal purposes, and as spices in food and beverages. However, the phylogenetic placement of the turmeric plant (C. longa) in Nigeria is far from being fully resolved, hence the need for this study. The rhizomes of turmeric were collected at the Forestry Research Institute of Nigeria, Ibadan, Oyo state. Genomic DNA was extracted, followed by the amplification of the ITS and psbA-trnH regions. Phylogenetic analysis was conducted using the Maximum likelihood method. The result resolved the phylogenetic position of Nigerian species and supported existing subgenera classification into three clades, all with high bootstrap support for the three clades. The result of this study supports the subgenera classification of the genus and further reveals the phylogenetic position of C. longa. Keywords: Curcuma  longa,  ITS, psbA-trnH, Sanger Sequencing, Zingiberacea

Connecting the multiple dimensions of global soil fungal diversity

How the multiple facets of soil fungal diversity vary worldwide remains virtually unknown, hindering the management of this essential species-rich group. By sequencing high-resolution DNA markers in over 4000 topsoil samples from natural and human-altered ecosystems across all continents, we illustrate the distributions and drivers of different levels of taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity of fungi and their ecological groups. We show the impact of precipitation and temperature interactions on local fungal species richness (alpha diversity) across different climates. Our findings reveal how temperature drives fungal compositional turnover (beta diversity) and phylogenetic diversity, linking them with regional species richness (gamma diversity). We integrate fungi into the principles of global biodiversity distribution and present detailed maps for biodiversity conservation and modeling of global ecological processes

Notes for genera: basal clades of Fungi (including Aphelidiomycota, Basidiobolomycota, Blastocladiomycota, Calcarisporiellomycota, Caulochytriomycota, Chytridiomycota, Entomophthoromycota, Glomeromycota, Kickxellomycota, Monoblepharomycota, Mortierellomycota, Mucoromycota, Neocallimastigomycota, Olpidiomycota, Rozellomycota and Zoopagomycota)

Compared to the higher fungi (Dikarya), taxonomic and evolutionary studies on the basal clades of fungi are fewer in number. Thus, the generic boundaries and higher ranks in the basal clades of fungi are poorly known. Recent DNA based taxonomic studies have provided reliable and accurate information. It is therefore necessary to compile all available information since basal clades genera lack updated checklists or outlines. Recently, Tedersoo et al. (MycoKeys 13:1--20, 2016) accepted Aphelidiomycota and Rozellomycota in Fungal clade. Thus, we regard both these phyla as members in Kingdom Fungi. We accept 16 phyla in basal clades viz. Aphelidiomycota, Basidiobolomycota, Blastocladiomycota, Calcarisporiellomycota, Caulochytriomycota, Chytridiomycota, Entomophthoromycota, Glomeromycota, Kickxellomycota, Monoblepharomycota, Mortierellomycota, Mucoromycota, Neocallimastigomycota, Olpidiomycota, Rozellomycota and Zoopagomycota. Thus, 611 genera in 153 families, 43 orders and 18 classes are provided with details of classification, synonyms, life modes, distribution, recent literature and genomic data. Moreover, Catenariaceae Couch is proposed to be conserved, Cladochytriales Mozl.-Standr. is emended and the family Nephridiophagaceae is introduced

Mycobiome analysis of leaf, root, and soil of symptomatic oil palm trees (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) affected by leaf spot disease

Recently, attention has been shifting toward the perspective of the existence of plants and microbes as a functioning ecological unit. However, studies highlighting the impacts of the microbial community on plant health are still limited. In this study, fungal community (mycobiome) of leaf, root, and soil of symptomatic leaf-spot diseased (SS) oil palm were compared against asymptomatic (AS) trees using ITS2 rRNA gene metabarcoding. A total of 3,435,417 high-quality sequences were obtained from 29 samples investigated. Out of the 14 phyla identified, Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were the most dominant accounting for 94.2 and 4.7% of the total counts in AS, and 75 and 21.2% in SS, respectively. Neopestalotiopsis is the most abundant genus for AS representing 8.0% of the identified amplicons compared to 2.0% in SS while Peniophora is the most abundant with 8.6% of the identified amplicons for SS compared to 0.1% in AS. The biomarker discovery algorithm LEfSe revealed different taxa signatures for the sample categories, particularly soil samples from asymptomatic trees, which were the most enriched. Network analysis revealed high modularity across all groups, except in root samples. Additionally, a large proportion of the identified keystone species consisted of rare taxa, suggesting potential role in ecosystem functions. Surprisingly both AS and SS leaf samples shared taxa previously associated with oil palm leaf spot disease. The significant abundance of Trichoderma asperellum in the asymptomatic root samples could be further explored as a potential biocontrol agent against oil palm disease.Peer reviewe

Nutrient and Physiological Requirements for Biomass Production of Pestalotiopsis sp. UMAS P14 and Pseudopestalotiopsis sp. UMAS P2005/2592

Fungi are important decomposers in our ecosystem and are useful in metabolite production, bio-degradation and bio-sorption of different substrates and wastes through their mycelial biomass. Fungal species are known to have different preferences for their growth requirements. Two fungal species Pestalotiopsis and Pseudopestalotiopsis useful in many biotechnological applications were studied. Nutrient and physiological requirements for mycelial biomass production such as carbon and nitrogen, pH, light and temperature were investigated. Both fungal isolates were grown in liquid basal medium supplemented separately with various carbon and nitrogen source and incubated under different light, pH and temperature conditions for 15 days. In general, Pestalotiopsis sp. and Pseudopestalotiopsis sp. showed significant preferences for monosaccharide and disaccharide carbon source as compared to sugar alcohols and polysaccharides, whereas ammonium tartrate was more preferred as a nitrogen source compared to ammonium nitrate, ammonium sulphate and other ammonium salts. These two fungal species were able to grow and produce good mycelial biomass (223.33 mg for Pseudopestalotiopsis and 136.67 mg for Pestalotiopsis) at temperature range of 15°C to 30°C and (290.00 mg for Pseudopestalotiopsis and 256.67 mg for Pestalotiopsis) on media pH of slightly acidic to slightly alkaline. However, they showed no significant preferences between constant light, total darkness and alternate light conditions. The results from this study will be very useful for the mycelial biomass production of Pestalotiopsis sp. and Pseudopestalotiopsis sp. for their biotechnological applications.</jats:p