Biodegradation of ochratoxin A by endophytic Trichoderma koningii strains.

Ochratoxin A (OTA) is a mycotoxin produced by Aspergillus spp. and Penicillium spp. that causes a threat to food safety and human health. Fungal biodegradation might be a promising strategy for reducing the OTA contamination in the future. In this study, the ability of Trichoderma koningii strains to degrade OTA produced by Aspergillus niger T2 (MW513392.1) isolated from tomato seeds was investigated. Among T. koningii strains tested, three strains; AUMC11519, AUMC11520 and AUMC11521 completely eliminated OTA from the culture medium, while AUMC11522 strain eliminated only 41.82% of OTA. OTα-amide, 3-phenylpropionic acid, OTα and phenylalanine were assayed as degradation products by FTIR analysis and LC-MS/MS spectra. Carboxypeptidase A (CPA) was found responsible for OTA degradation when a metal ion chelator, EDTA, was added to cell free supernatants of the three effective strains. OTA detoxification by T. koningii could present new prospective strategies for a possible application in food commodities intoxicated with ochratoxin.

Iron stress response and bioaccumulation potential of three fungal strains isolated from sewage-irrigated soil.

AIMS: Contamination with heavy metal (HM) is a severe environmental issue. Therefore, there is a pressing need to create environmentally safe and cost-effective HM bioremediation approaches. METHODS AND RESULTS: Three iron-tolerant fungal strains were isolated from sewage-irrigated soils, molecularly identified and deposited in the GenBank as Aspergillus flavus MT639638, A. terreus MT605370 and Fusarium oxysporum MT605399. The fungal growth, minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC), tolerance index (TI), removal efficiency, bioaccumulation, and enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants were determined. Based on MIC values, A. flavus MT639638 was the most resistant strain. F. oxysporum displayed the highest percent removal efficiency (93.65% at 4000 mg L-1 ) followed by A. flavus (92.92%, at 11,000 mg L-1 ), and A. terreus (91.18% at 3000 mg L-1 ). F. oxysporum was selected based on its highly sensitivity for further characterization of its response to Fe(II) stress using TEM, SEM and EDX, in addition to HPLC analysis of organic acids. These analyses demonstrated the localization of bioaccumulated Fe(II) and ultrastructural changes induced by iron and indicated induction release of organic acids. CONCLUSIONS: Our fungal strains showed an effective capacity for removal of Fe(II) via bioaccumulation and biosorption mechanisms which were supported by instrumental analyses. The iron tolerance potentiality was mediated by induction of selected antioxidative enzymes and biomolecules. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This study depicts a potential utilization of the three fungal strains for the bioremediation of iron-contaminated soils.

Biosynthesis and Anti-Mycotoxigenic Activity of Zingiber officinale Roscoe-Derived Metal Nanoparticles.

Mycotoxigenic fungi have attracted special attention due to their threat to food security and toxicity to human health. Aqueous extract of Zingiber officinale Roscoe was used as reducing and capping agent for the synthesis of silver (AgNPs), copper (CuNPs), and zinc oxide (ZnONPs) nanoparticles. UV-Visible spectra of the AgNPs, CuNPs, and ZnONPs showed absorption peaks at λmax 416 nm, 472 nm, and 372 nm, respectively. Zeta potential of AgNPs, CuNPs, and ZnONPs were -30.9, -30.4 and -18.4 mV, respectively. ZnONPs showed the highest activity against Aspergillus awamori ZUJQ 965830.1 (ZOI 20.9 mm and MIC 24.7 µg/mL). TEM micrographs of ZnONPs-treated A. awamori showed cracks and pits in the cell wall, liquefaction of the cytoplasmic content, making it less electron-dense. The sporulation and ochratoxin A production of A. awamori was inhibited by ZnONPs in a concentration-dependent pattern. The inhibition percentage of OTA were 45.6, 84.78 and 95.65% for 10, 15, 20 of ZnONPs/mL, respectively.

Bioremediation and tolerance of zinc ions using Fusarium solani.

Evaluating the mechanism of tolerance and biotransformation Zn(II) ions by Fusarium solani based on the different physiological was the objective of this work. The physical properties of synthesized ZnONPs was determined by UV-spectroscopy, transmission electron microscope, and X-ray powder diffraction. The structural and anatomical changes of F. solani in response to Zn(II) was examined by TEM and SEM. From the HPLC profile, oxalic acid by F. solani was strongly increased by about 10.5 folds in response to 200 mg/l Zn(II) comparing to control cultures. The highest biosorption potential were reported at pH 4.0 (alkali-treated biomass) and 5.0 (native biomass), at 600 mg/l Zn(II) concentration, incubation temperature 30 °C, and contact time 40 min (alkali-treated biomass) and 6 h (native biomass). From the FT-IR spectroscopy, the main functional groups implemented on this remediation were C-S stretching, C=O C=N, C-H bending, C-N stretching and N-H bending. From the EDX spectra, fungal cellular sulfur and phosphorus compounds were the mainly compartments involved on ZN(II) binding.

Exploiting the Biosynthetic Potency of Taxol from Fungal Endophytes of Conifers Plants; Genome Mining and Metabolic Manipulation.

Endophytic fungi have been considered as a repertoire for bioactive secondary metabolites with potential application in medicine, agriculture and food industry. The biosynthetic pathways by fungal endophytes raise the argument of acquisition of these machineries of such complex metabolites from the plant host. Diterpenoids "Taxol" is the most effective anticancer drug with highest annual sale, since its discovery in 1970 from the Pacific yew tree, Taxus brevifolia. However, the lower yield of Taxol from this natural source (bark of T. brevifolia), availability and vulnerability of this plant to unpredicted fluctuation with the ecological and environmental conditions are the challenges. Endophytic fungi from Taxus spp. opened a new avenue for industrial Taxol production due to their fast growth, cost effectiveness, independence on climatic changes, feasibility of genetic manipulation. However, the anticipation of endophytic fungi for industrial Taxol production has been challenged by the loss of its productivity, due to the metabolic reprograming of cells, downregulating the expression of its encoding genes with subculturing and storage. Thus, the objectives of this review were to (1) Nominate the endophytic fungal isolates with the Taxol producing potency from Taxaceae and Podocarpaceae; (2) Emphasize the different approaches such as molecular manipulation, cultural optimization, co-cultivation for enhancing the Taxol productivities; (3) Accentuate the genome mining of the rate-limiting enzymes for rapid screening the Taxol biosynthetic machinery; (4) Triggering the silenced rate-limiting genes and transcriptional factors to activates the biosynthetic gene cluster of Taxol.

Tolerance and mycoremediation of silver ions by Fusarium solani.

Silver ions discharged from various industries, are potentially toxic to living organisms at low concentrations, thus, there is an increasing need for development of an eco-friendly and cost-effective approach for its bioremediation. Filamentous fungi especially, Fusarium solani displayed a strong resistance to copper and cadmium ions as revealed from our previous study (El-Sayed 2014), however, the mechanisms of silver resistance by this fungus has not been resolved yet. Thus, this study was an extension to our previous work, to elucidate the mechanism of silver ions resistance and biotransformation by F. solani. The growth, bioaccumulation, thiol, total antioxidant, malondialdehyde (MDA), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) contents and polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and catalase (CAT) activities of F. solani in response to silver ions were determined. Production and bioaccumulation of silver nanoparticles was characterized by UV-visible spectroscopy, TEM, and X-ray powder diffraction (XRD). The ultrastructural changes of F. solani induced by Ag(I) was examined by TEM and SEM. Production of oxalic acid by F. solani was increased by about 343.8% in response to 400 mg/l Ag(I), compared to control cultures (without silver ions) as revealed from HPLC analysis. The maximum biosorption levels by the native and alkali-treated biomass were carried out at pH 5.0, initial metal concentration 200 mg/l, biomass 0.5 g/l, temperature 35 °C, and contact time 1 h (native biomass) and 3 h (alkali-treated biomass). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) results revealed that the main functional groups involved on this mycoremediation were C-S stretching, C=O C=N, C - H bending, C-N stretching and N-H bending. EDX spectra indicated the involvement of fungal cellular sulfur and phosphorus compounds in Ag(I) binding.

Biocidal Activity of Metal Nanoparticles Synthesized by Fusarium solani against Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria and Mycotoxigenic Fungi.

Antibiotic resistance by pathogenic bacteria and fungi is one of the most serious global public health problems in the 21st century, directly affecting human health and lifestyle. Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus with strong resistance to the common antibiotics have been isolated from Intensive Care Unit patients at Zagazig Hospital. Thus, in this study we assessed the biocidal activity of nanoparticles of silver, copper and zinc synthesized by Fusarium solani KJ 623702 against these multidrug resistant-bacteria. The synthesized Metal Nano-particles (MNPs) were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and Zeta potential. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) result showed the presence of different functional groups such as carboxyl, amino and thiol, ester and peptide bonds in addition to glycosidic bonds that might stabilize the dispersity of MNPs from aggregation. The antimicrobial potential of MNPs by F. solani against the multidrug-resistant (MDR) P. aeruginosa and S. aureus in addition to the mycotoxigenic Aspergillus awamori, A. fumigatus and F. oxysporum was investigated, based on the visual growth by diameter of inhibition zone. Among the synthesized MNPs, the spherical AgNPs (13.70 nm) displayed significant effect against P. aeruginosa (Zone of Inhibition 22.4 mm and Minimum Inhibitory Concentration 21.33 µg/ml), while ZINC oxide Nano-Particles were the most effective against F. oxysporum (ZOI, 18.5 mm and MIC 24.7 µg/ml). Transmission Electron Microscope micrographs of AgNP-treated P. aeruginosa showed cracks and pits in the cell wall, with internalization of NPs. Production of pyocyanin pigment was significantly inhibited by AgNPs in a concentration-dependent manner, and at 5-20 µg of AgNPs/ml, the pigment production was reduced by about 15-100%, respectively.