Effectiveness of hot oil treatment on cultivated 15 year-old acacia hybrid against Coriolus versicolors, Gloeophyllum trabeum and Pycnoporus sanguineus

The effectiveness of the hot oil treatment process on 15 year old cultivated Acacia hybrid was studied. Accelerated laboratory durability studies were conducted on the hot oil treated Acacia hybrid inoculated with fungi Coriolus versicolors, Gloeophyllum trabeum and Pycnoporus sanguineus. The logs of Acacia hybrid were harvested, segregated into bottom, middle and top portions, and later were oil-heat treated in an organic palm oil at temperatures of 180, 200 and 220°C for the duration of 30, 60 and 90 min. The wood samples that were dried and ground into sawdust was air-dried again before undergoing accelerated laboratory durability tests. Untreated samples were used as control. The durability of the wood increases with an increase in temperature and duration of the treatment. The hot oil treated samples could reduce the attack of G. trabeum from 20.89%, 20.94% and 21.29% in the control samples to 0.88-4.07%, 1.22-4.84% and 1.28-4.22% at bottom, middle and top portions, respectively. The attack of C. versicolors were reduced from 26.59%, 30.28% and 34.79% in the control samples to 2.89-9.41%, 3.88-16.84 and 4.27-17.34% at bottom, middle and top portions. However, the attacked of P. sanguineus were least effective with 31.42%, 36.33% and 36.55% in control samples to 3.26-12.55%, 4.67-15.36% and 4.69-19.22% at bottom, middle and top portions. Massive colonization of mycelia occurs in vessels of the untreated Acacia hybrid wood in comparison to the hot oil treated wood when observed through scanning electron microscope

Isolation and characterization of endophytic fungi as a source of anticancer compounds from Catharanthus roseus / Farah Wahida Ayob

The potential anti-carcinogenic endophytic fungi that could produce the same alkaloids vinblastine and vincristine were isolated from wild Catharanthus roseus (purple and white) plants. Four endophytic fungi have been identified as Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Macrophomina phaseolina, Nigrospora sphaerica and Fusarium solani based on both molecular and morphological techniques. In order to confirm these fungi were endophytes, they were tested for antimicrobial properties and hydrolytic enzyme test. The antibacterial properties of these endophytic fungi were tested against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli where N. sphaerica showed a positive result against S. aureus of plug sample. While CSE of F. solani showed a positive result against S. aureus. Meanwhile, the antifungal test showed that C. gloeosporioides, M. phaseolina, N. sphaerica and F. solani were positive against Aspergillus niger and Candida albicans. These endophytic fungi also positively present of qualitative enzyme test of cellulase, amylase and protease except M. phaseolina which only positive on cellulase. Through liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LCMS), crude mycelia extract (CME) of N. sphaerica was determined for vinblastine (0.868 μg/mL) and CME of C. gloeosporioides for vincristine ( 32 μg/mL compared to the vinblastine from a CLE of C. roseus > 350 μg/mL. While the highest percentage of inhibition (POI) of C. gloeosporioides was 50.45 % of the concentration 50 μg/mL against breast cell line cancer. The apoptosis assay showed this cell line cancer treated with alkaloids purified from N. sphaerica, C. gloeosporioides, C. roseus (white and purple) have a percentage of early apoptosis 3.1 %, 1.61 %, 1.20 % and 1.34 %, and a percentage of late apoptosis 4.57 %, 7.82 %, 4.15 % and 3.16 % respectively. These endophytic fungi have been tested for antioxidant properties using different assays; DPPH radical-scavenging activity, ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) and ferrous ion chelating activity (FCA). There was no result on the half maximal concentration (IC50) for both DPPH and FCA assays of all fungal extracts. However, through FRAP assays the results ranged from 0.336±0.01 to 0.477±0.11 mmol Fe2+/g extract where N. sphaerica extract had the highest FRAP value. This fungus also showed the highest TPC and TFC levels, which were 0.030±0.000 (mg GAE/g) and 0.038±0.001 (mg QE/g) respectively. Even though the crude mycelia extract of N. sphaerica and C. gloeosporioides were shown positive for vinblastine and vincristine production, they did not perform on polyphenolic test and it revealed that the polyphenolic content did not affect the anticancer activity of the crude fungal extract

Studies on the durability of Acacia hybrid woods through environmental friendly oil-heat treatment process

The durability of oil-heat treated Acacia hybrid wood, an important plantation species in Sabah, was tested using in-vitro techniques against three different wood decay fungi (P. sanguineus,C . versicolor and G. trabeum).T o determine the effectiveness of the treatments , 900 wood blocks of Acacia hybrid («1.0 x 2.5 x 2.5 cm) were soaked into boiling palm oil with different temperature range between 180°C - 220°C and period between 30 - 90 min before exposed to the fungal cultures for 12 weeks. Results from the in-vitro tests showed that massive colonization by fungi on woodblocks affected the weight loss of samples from top, middle and bottom portion of trees, with a range of 2.89 - 10.59%, 4.67-20.33% and 4.27-20.55% (P. sanguineus); 3.26-15.42%, 3.88-16.84% and 4.69-18.79% (C. versicolor) and 0.88-4.94%, 1.22-5.29% and 1.22-4.89% (G. trabeum). The percentage of moisture contents of the oil heat treated Acacia hybrid wood had decreased in relation to the treatment given (5.96%, 5.61% and 4.40%) compared to untreated samples (12.04%, 13% and 13.48%) for top, middle and bottom portion respectively. A lesser amount of weight loss indicated greater durability of woods in relation to the treatment given, subsequently implied the potential of the heat treatment in improving resistance of Acacia hybrid woods against wood decay fungi

Effectiveness of hot oil treatment on cultivated 15 year-old acacia hybrid against coriolus versicolors, gloephyllum trabeum and pycnoporus sanguineus (Keberkesanan rawatan minyak panas terhadap acacia hibrid ladang berumur 15 Tahun didedahkan pada Coriolus versicolors, Gloeophyllum trabeum dan Pycnoporus sanguineus)

The effectiveness of the hot oil treatment process on 15 year old cultivated Acacia hybrid was studied. Accelerated laboratory durability studies were conducted on the hot oil treated Acacia hybrid inoculated with fungi Coriolus versicolors, Gloeophyllum trabeum and Pycnoporus sanguineus. The logs of Acacia hybrid were harvested, segregated into bottom, middle and top portions, and later were oil-heat treated in an organic palm oil at temperatures of 180, 200 and 220°C for the duration of 30, 60 and 90 min. The wood samples that were dried and ground into sawdust was air-dried again before undergoing accelerated laboratory durability tests. Untreated samples were used as control. The durability of the wood increases with an increase in temperature and duration of the treatment. The hot oil treated samples could reduce the attack of G. trabeum from 20.89%, 20.94% and 21.29% in the control samples to 0.88-4.07%, 1.22-4.84% and 1.28-4.22% at bottom, middle and top portions, respectively. The attack of C. versicolors were reduced from 26.59%, 30.28% and 34.79% in the control samples to 2.89-9.41%, 3.88-16.84 and 4.27-17.34% at bottom, middle and top portions. However, the attacked of P. sanguineus were least effective with 31.42%, 36.33% and 36.55% in control samples to 3.26-12.55%, 4.67-15.36% and 4.69-19.22% at bottom, middle and top portions. Massive colonization of mycelia occurs in vessels of the untreated Acacia hybrid wood in comparison to the hot oil treated wood when observed through scanning electron microscope