Anti-Candida metabolites from endophytic fungi

Submerged cultures of some 1500 Ascomycota and Basidiomycota isolated from their fruit-bodies or as soil-borne, coprophilous or endophytic fungi were screened for activity against Candida albicans and a range of other pathogenic and saprotrophic fungi. Considerably more Ascomycota (11-16%) than Basidiomycota (3.5%) produced metabolites with activity against C. albicans. From five species of endophytes, six bioactive compounds were isolated and identified, viz. cerulenin (1), arundifungin (2), sphaeropsidin A (3), 5-(1,3-butadiene-1-yl)-3-(propene-1-yl)-2-(5H)-furanone (4), ascosteroside A (formerly called ascosteroside; 5) and a derivative of 5, ascosteroside B (6). 1, 3 and 5 were isolated from fungi belonging to different orders than previously described producers. Antifungal activities of 2 and 4-6 in the agar diffusion test were comparable with those of amphotericin B. Compound 6 exhibited a similar antifungal activity as 5 but its cytotoxicity towards Hep G2 cells was considerably lower. This study points to endophytic fungi related to hemibiotrophic or latent plant pathogens as an important source of bio- and chemodiversity.