Chrysosporazines F-M: P-Glycoprotein Inhibitory Phenylpropanoid Piperazines from an Australian Marine Fish Derived Fungus, Chrysosporium sp. CMB-F294.

Chemical analysis of the fungus Chrysosporium sp. CMB-F294 isolated from the gastrointestinal tract of a market-purchased specimen of Mugil mullet yielded eight new alkaloids, belonging to a rare class of phenylpropanoid piperazines. Chrysosporazines F-M (1-8) occur as an equilibrium mixture of acetamide rotamers and feature unprecedented carbocyclic and heterocyclic scaffolds. Structures inclusive of absolute configuration were assigned by detailed spectroscopic analysis, supported by biosynthetic considerations. Structure-activity relationship studies determined that selected chrysosporazines were promising noncytotoxic inhibitors of the multidrug resistance efflux pump P-glycoprotein (P-gp), capable of reversing doxorubicin resistance in P-gp-overexpressing human colon carcinoma cells (SW620 Ad300). Chrysosporazine F (1) was particularly noteworthy, with a 2.5 µM cotreatment inducing a doxorubicin gain in sensitivity (GS 14) > 2-fold that of the positive control verapamil (GS 6.1).

In Vitro Antifungal Susceptibility of Yeast and Mold Phases of Isolates of Dimorphic Fungal Pathogen Emergomyces africanus (Formerly Emmonsia sp.) from HIV-Infected South African Patients.

Disseminated emmonsiosis is an important AIDS-related mycosis in South Africa that is caused by Emergomycesafricanus, a newly described and renamed dimorphic fungal pathogen. In vitro antifungal susceptibility data can guide management. Identification of invasive clinical isolates was confirmed phenotypically and by sequencing of the internal transcribed spacer region. Yeast and mold phase MICs of fluconazole, voriconazole, itraconazole, posaconazole, caspofungin, anidulafungin, micafungin, and flucytosine were determined with custom-made frozen broth microdilution (BMD) panels in accordance with Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute recommendations. MICs of amphotericin B, itraconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole were determined by Etest. Fifty unique E. africanus isolates were tested. The yeast and mold phase geometric mean (GM) BMD and Etest MICs of itraconazole were 0.01 mg/liter. The voriconazole and posaconazole GM BMD MICs were 0.01 mg/liter for both phases, while the GM Etest MICs were 0.001 and 0.002 mg/liter, respectively. The fluconazole GM BMD MICs were 0.18 mg/liter for both phases. The GM Etest MICs of amphotericin B, for the yeast and mold phases were 0.03 and 0.01 mg/liter. The echinocandins and flucytosine had very limited in vitro activity. Treatment and outcome data were available for 37 patients; in a multivariable model including MIC data, only isolation from blood (odds ratio [OR], 8.6; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.3 to 54.4; P = 0.02) or bone marrow (OR, 12.1; 95% CI, 1.2 to 120.2; P = 0.03) (versus skin biopsy) was associated with death. In vitro susceptibility data support the management of disseminated emmonsiosis with amphotericin B, followed by itraconazole, voriconazole, or posaconazole. Fluconazole was a relatively less potent agent.

Antimicrobial and mosquitocidal activity of microbial synthesized silver nanoparticles.

Microbial synthesis of nanoparticles is a green approach that interconnects nanotechnology and microbial biotechnology. Here, we synthesized the silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) using bacterial strains of Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus subtilius and Streptomyces anulatus. We tested the efficacy of AgNPs against the larvae, pupae and adults of Anopheles stephensi and Culex quinquefasciatus. We have also investigated the antifungal activity of AgNPs against the soil keratinophilic fungus of Chrysosporium keratinophilum. The efficacy tests were then performed at different concentrations and varying numbers of hours by probit analysis. The results were obtained using a UV-visible spectrophotometer, and the images were recorded with a transmission electron microscope (TEM). The synthesized AgNPs were in varied shape and sizes. The larvae and pupae of Cx. quinquefasciatus were found highly susceptible to AgNPs synthesized using the L. monocytogenes, B. subtilius and S. anulatus than the An. stephensi, while the adults of An. stephensi were found more susceptible to the AgNPs synthesized using the L. monocytogenes, B. subtilius and S. anulatus the Cx. quinquefasciatus. Further, these nanoparticles have also been tested as antifungal activity against the entomopathogenic fungus C. keratinophilum. The higher zone of inhibition occurred at the concentration level of 50 µl. This study gives an innovative approach to develop eco-friendly AgNPs which act as an effective antifungal agent/fungicide and insecticide.

Invasive pulmonary infection caused by Chrysosporium articulatum: the first case report.

Chrysosporium species, saprobic soil fungi, comprise more than 60 species. There is some confusion regarding the taxonomy and nomenclature between Chrysosporium and Emmonsia since the causative agents of adiaspiromycosis, the development of big thick-walled spores (adiaspores) in humans or animals, were previously thought to be Chrysosporium. Chrysosporium articulatum has never been reported to cause invasive infection in humans. We report herein the first case of invasive pulmonary infection caused by Chrysosporium articulatum in a 16-year-old man with acute T-cell lymphoblastic leukaemia. He was successfully treated with voriconazole.

Synthesis, antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of novel vanillin derived piperidin-4-one oxime esters: preponderant role of the phenyl ester substituents on the piperidin-4-one oxime core.

The study has been achieved the efficient synthesis of vanillin derived piperidin-4-one oxime esters (5a-m) via four step reaction involved Mannich reaction of vanillin, acetone and ammonium acetate to obtain 2,6-bis(4-hydroxy-3-methoxyphenyl)-piperidin-4-one 2 followed by N-methylation and oximation. Further, to enhance the biological activity of vanillin derived piperidin-4-one oxime core, esterification of 4 with substituted benzoyl chlorides in the presence of strong organic base t-BuOK accomplished a series of vanillin derived piperidin-4-one oxime esters (5a-m). The synthesized analogues are screened for their antioxidant and antimicrobial studies and the preponderant effect of the phenyl ester substituents on the biological activity of piperidin-4-one oxime core was demonstrated. Among the tested compounds, 5i and 5j are emerged as outperformed antioxidants than standard Butylated hydroxy anisole (BHA) whereas, compounds 5b and 5d manifested potent antibacterial and antifungal activity than standard streptomycin and fluconazole respectively.

Characterization of a GH family 3 ß-glycoside hydrolase from Chrysosporium lucknowense and its application to the hydrolysis of ß-glucan and xylan.

The Bxl5-gene encoding a GH3 glycoside hydrolase of Chrysosporium lucknowense C1 was successfully cloned, the homologous recombinant product was secreted, purified and characterized. Bxl5 (120 ± 5 kDa) was able to hydrolyze low molecular weight substrates and polysaccharides containing ß-glucosidic as well as ß-xylosidic residues. The K(m) and V(max)/E values were found to be 0.3mM and 88 s(-1) on p-nitrophenyl-ß-d-glucopyranoside (PNPG), and 13.5mM and 1.8s(-1) on p-nitrophenyl-ß-d-xylopyranoside (PNPX). Optimal pH and temperature for Bxl5 were 4.6 and 75°C for the PNPG hydrolysis, and 5.0-5.5 and 70°C for PNPX hydrolysis. The enzyme was quite stable when incubated at elevated temperatures up to 65°C. Bxl5 hydrolyzes polymeric ß-glucans by the exo-mechanism allowing their complete conversion to d-glucose and is effective for xylan hydrolysis in combination with endo-acting xylan-degrading enzymes. The enzyme seems to be a very promising for bioconversion purposes.

Mode of action of Chrysosporium lucknowense C1 α-l-arabinohydrolases.

The mode of action of four Chrysosporium lucknowense C1 α-L-arabinohydrolases was determined to enable controlled and effective degradation of arabinan. The active site of endoarabinanase Abn1 has at least six subsites, of which the subsites -1 to +2 have to be occupied for hydrolysis. Abn1 was able to hydrolyze a branched arabinohexaose with a double substituted arabinose at subsite -2. The exo acting enzymes Abn2, Abn4 and Abf3 release arabinobiose (Abn2) and arabinose (Abn4 and Abf3) from the non-reducing end of reduced arabinose oligomers. Abn2 binds the two arabinose units only at the subsites -1 and -2. Abf3 prefers small oligomers over large oligomers. It is able to hydrolyze all linkages present in beet arabinan, including the linkages of double substituted residues. Abn4 is more active towards polymeric substrate and releases arabinose monomers from single substituted arabinose residues. Depending on the combination of the enzymes, the C1 arabinohydrolases can be used to effectively release branched arabinose oligomers and/or arabinose monomers.

Voriconazole, a safe alternative for treating infections caused by the Chrysosporium anamorph of Nannizziopsis vriesii in bearded dragons (Pogona vitticeps).

Dermal and systemic infections caused by the Chrysosporium anamorph of Nannizziopsis vriesii (CANV) are highly prevalent in reptiles and may result in severe disease and high mortality. Due to the high incidence of therapeutic failures, optimizing treatment is required. We first determined in this study the minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC) of itraconazole, voriconazole, amphotericin B and terbinafine against 32 CANV isolates. For voriconazole, amphotericin B and terbinafine a monomodal MIC distribution was seen, whereas a bimodal MIC distribution was present for itraconazole, indicating acquired resistance in one isolate. Fourteen naturally-infected bearded dragons (Pogona vitticeps), from the same owner, were treated orally with either itraconazole (5 mg/kg q24h) or voriconazole (10 mg/kg q24h). The clinical condition, drug plasma concentrations and the presence of CANV in skin samples were followed. The animals were treated until complete clearance of the fungus. The plasma concentrations of voriconazole and itraconazole exceeded the minimal inhibitory concentrations of the CANV isolates. Elimination of CANV was achieved on average after 27 and 47 days of treatment with itraconazole and voriconazole, respectively. Whereas only 2 out of 7 survived after itraconazole treatment, only a single animal died in the voriconazole treated group. In conclusion, based on a limited number of animals, voriconazole applied at a regimen of 10 mg/kg bodyweight (BW) q24h seems to be a safe and effective antimycotic drug to eliminate CANV infections in bearded dragons.

Incidence of dermatophytes and cyclohexamide resistant fungi on healthy children hairs and nails in nurseries.

In order to estimate the prevalence of dermatophytes and other fungi on healthy children hairs and nails, 92 hair samples and 85 nail samples (groups of 10 finger nails from each child) were collected from 5 nurseries (children aged 9 months up to 4 years) in Assiut city. From hair samples 22 species were collected, Trichophyton (2 species) and Microsporum (2 species) were the only recovered dermatophytes in addition to well known keratinophilic genus Chrysosporium (4 species). From nail samples, 18 species were identified, Trichophyton was represented by 4 species, Microsporum, 2 species and Chrysosporium, 4 species. Also, several other saprophytes and cycloheximide resistant fungi were isolated.

Pulmonary colonization by Chrysosporium zonatum associated with allergic inflammation in an immunocompetent subject.

We report a case of noninvasive pulmonary disease due to Chrysosporium zonatum in an immunocompetent male. The fungus colonized an existing tuberculous cavity and was isolated from transbronchial lavage fluid and from a percutaneous aspiration specimen. The disease was accompanied by the unusual feature of an allergic reaction. The fungus ball was successfully treated by intracavitary administration of amphotericin B. C. zonatum is the anamorph of the heterothallic ascomycete Uncinocarpus orissi, and the identity of the case isolate was verified by formation of ascospores in mating tests with reference isolates.

Influence of water activity and temperature on survival of and colony formation by heat-stressed Chrysosporium farinicola aleuriospores.

The ability of sublethally heat-stressed aleuriospores of Chrysosporium farinicola to form colonies on yeast extract-glucose agar (YGA) supplemented with sufficient glucose, sorbitol, glycerol, and NaCl to achieve reduced water activity (aw) in the range of 0.88 to 0.95 was determined. The effects of the aw of diluent and incubation temperature during recovery and colony formation were also investigated. Aleuriospores harvested from 14-day-old cultures grown at 25 degrees C were less resistant to heat inactivation compared with aleuriospores from 20-day-cultures. Increased populations of heat-stressed aleuriospores were recovered as the aw of YGA was decreased from 0.95 (glucose and glycerol) and 0.94 (sorbitol) to 0.89 and 0.88, respectively. In NaCl-supplemented YGA, populations recovered at an aw of 0.94 were greatly reduced compared with populations detected at an aw of 0.92; no colonies were formed on NaCl-supplemented YGA at an aw of 0.88. Tolerance to aw values above 0.88 to 0.89 as influenced by solute type was in the order of glucose greater than sorbitol greater than glycerol greater than NaCl. Incubation at 20 degrees generally resulted in an increase in recoverable aleuriospores compared with incubation at 25 degrees C or at 30 degrees C for 14 days followed by 20 degrees C for 10 days. The lethal effect of NaCl on heat-stressed aleuriospores was enhanced at 30 degrees C. The retention of viability of aleuriospores held in sucrose-peptone water diluent (aw, 0.936) for 20 min was essentially the same as that observed when aleuriospores were held in peptone water (aw, 0.997).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adiaspiromycosis treated successfully with ketoconazole.

We describe a case of adiaspiromycosis in a 37-year-old male Caucasian. This is the first reported case with diffuse involvement of both lungs in a severely ill patient treated successfully with antifungal chemotherapy.

Ecological and physiological studies on fungi associated with human hair.

Thirty-seven species attributed to 19 genera of keratinophilic fungi were recovered from 100 human hair samples collected from the Assiut governorate. The genera Aspergillus followed by Penicillium and Chrysosporium were frequently isolated from 65, 43 and 30% of the samples respectively. Fifteen species and 13 genera of thermophilic and thermotolerant fungi (recovered at 45 degrees C) were identified. The thermotolerant Aspergillus fumigatus was frequently encountered and emerged from 82% of the samples. Thirteen isolates of keratinophilic and 20 isolates of thermophilic fungi were tested for lipolytic and proteolytic activities. All the keratinophilic fungi showed lipolytic and proteolytic activities while 100 and 85% of the thermophilic fungi showed lipolytic and proteolytic activities. Using the paper-disc plate method, 12 types of shampoos and oils were tested for their antifungal activities on 42 strains of keratinophilic and thermophilic or thermotolerant fungi. Three out of four types of shampoo proved to be highly effective against all the test fungi.

Comparative susceptibility of the agents of adiaspiromycosis to imidazole derivatives in vitro.

Clotrimazole, econazole, ketoconazole and miconazole inhibited the growth of Emmonsia crescens and E. parva in vitro. Clotrimazole and econazole gave particularly low minimal inhibitory concentrations against the mycelial phase of the fungi, and minimal fungicidal concentrations of all four antifungals were about 2 to 4 times higher than the minimal inhibitory concentration. The adiasporic developmental phases of E. crescens and E. parva were slightly more sensitive to all the imidazole antifungals than the mycelial phases.

[Adiaspiromycosis--a little known lung disease]. / Ubersichtsarbeit.

Adiaspiromycosis produced by the fungus Emmonsia crescens is a pulmonary disease afflicting primarily small wild mammals. Man, too, may become an accidental link of the saproparatrophic circulation of the agent. Humans are infected--similarly to other mammals--by inhaling the elements of the saprophytic stage of the fungus living for long time periods in the soil substrates. After the infecting cells, aleuriospores, have invaded the host lungs, they are converted into the elements of the parasitic stage--adiaspores. These are surrounded by granulomatous tissue and reach up to 700 microns in diameter. In the circulation of the agent, the infected wild mammals play a role of reservoir hosts harbouring the parasitic stage of the fungus in nature for a relatively long time. In some cases these animals also enable spread of adiaspiromycosis from exoanthropic foci into human habitations. Clinical and experimental studies show that the result of an infection may be--in addition to its liquidation--an asymptomatic form of disease or a disseminated pulmonary process. In addition to as yet insufficiently proved proper action of fungus cells, a reduction in the functional pulmonary parenchyma plays a role in the pathogenesis of the pulmonary forms. An existence of extrapulmonary forms of adiaspiromycosis is not excluded. Serological methods have not been routinely used for diagnosis as yet: immune reaction of the organism has a character of antibody response and delayed hypersensitivity. Cell mediated immunity has not been studied as yet. Treatment of human disease is primarily a surgical one. The fungistatic drugs pimaricin or amphotericin B may be employed, corticosteroids may be indicated in individual cases. The efficacy of modern antifungal substances has not been established as yet.

Antifungal activity of pyrithione against Emmonsia crescens in vitro and in vivo.

The sensitivity of saprophytic and parasitic phase of some strains of Emmonsia crescens, E. parva and Chrysosporium pannorum to 22 antimycotic drugs was studied in vitro. Pyrithione produced the best effect on both live phases of the studied strains. The efficacy of Pyrithione, Pimafucin and Amphotericin B was compared in experimental adiaspiromycosis, Pyrithione showed also in vivo the best therapeutic effect. It depended on the beginning of the application. The illness did not develop if Pyrithione was applied during the first 15 days after the infection. In case of later application of Pyrithione only a very light form of adiaspiromycosis developed. Pimafucin and especially Amphotericin B did not influence the development of the disease.