Investigations on Antioxidative Potential of Poroid Medicinal Mushroom Porodaedalea pini (Agaricomycetes).

The present investigations were undertaken to evaluate the antioxidative potential of Porodaedalea pini (Brot.) Murrill. Different solvent extracts were prepared using powdered basidiocarps to determine the total phenolic content in terms of tannic acid equivalents (TAE), hydroxyl, superoxide, and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity. Maximum TAE (12.42 mg/g) were found in hot water (HW) extract, which was obtained for 1 h as compared to ethanol (0.456 mg/g) and methanol (0.227 mg/g) extracts. This was further supported by high hydroxyl radical scavenging activity (90.0%), superoxide radical scavenging activity (88.9%), and DPPH radical scavenging activity (74.92%) in the the HW extract obtained for 1 h. Mass spectra analysis of HW extract revealed the presence of 14 polyphenolic compounds responsible for imparting antioxidative character. Among these hispidulin is one of the major polyphenolic compounds present in the poroid mushroom under investigation; this was further validated by high-performance liquid chromatography analysis.

Porostereum sp., Associated with Saffron (Crocus sativus L.), is a Latent Pathogen Capable of Producing Phytotoxic Chlorinated Aromatic Compounds.

Saffron (Crocus sativus L.) is one of the most expensive spices in the world due to its medicinal and aromatic value. However, saffron production is severely affected by the corm rot disease throughout the saffron producing countries. In this study, we report a basidiomycetous latent pathogen of saffron, designated as CSE26, capable of producing phytotoxic compounds. CSE26 is a highly odorous basidiomycete with monomitic hyphal system. Molecular phylogeny of ITS and 28S ribosomal gene sequence of CSE26 assigned it as Porostereum spadiceum. It was found to produce corm rot in C. sativus under in vivo and field conditions, with a disease severity index of 0.7 and 0.5, respectively. CSE26 was found to produce chlorinated aromatic compounds (CAMs) having phytotoxic activity against Arabidopsis plants. Therefore, these compounds may be acting as pathogenic determinants of CSE26. However, there is a need to study the level of production of these CAMs by this fungus in the natural environment and their effects on plant health.