The Pathogenic Fungal Genus Corynespora: A Prolific Source of Bioactive Secondary Metabolites

In this perspective, we examine the chemical structures and biological activities of 55 secondary metabolites isolated from the pathogenic fungal genus Corynespora. Over 20% of these compounds demonstrate bioactivities, including antibacterial, anticancer, enzyme inhibition, and others. Bioinformatic analysis reveals that Corynespora possesses a high potential for encoding PKS-I and NRPS natural products, including many clade-specific metabolites, and only 2.1% of biosynthetic gene cluster families are associated with known secondary metabolites. This study underscores the significant, unexplored potential of Corynespora strains for synthesizing novel secondary metabolites, providing valuable insights into the targeted discovery and biosynthesis of novel natural products from this genus.