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Steroid Components of Marine-Derived Fungal Strain Penicillium levitum N33.2 and Their Biological Activities

Summary

This research discovered three steroid compounds from a marine fungus that show promise for developing new medicines. The compounds demonstrated potential for treating various conditions including cancer, inflammation, and diabetes. Impact on everyday life: • Could lead to new anti-cancer drugs with fewer side effects • May help develop better treatments for inflammatory conditions • Potential for new diabetes medications from natural sources • Shows promise for developing obesity treatments • Demonstrates the value of marine organisms in discovering new medicines

Background

Secondary metabolites produced by ascomycetes with diverse chemical structures and rich biological activities have attracted attention from researchers for decades. Many have been essential in medicine, food and agriculture, especially those from plant-inhabiting fungi. Aquatic plant-derived fungi have proven to be interesting study subjects due to their unique living conditions compared to terrestrial origins. The Penicillium genus comprises almost 500 identified species and is one of the most historical and common filamentous fungi producing popular pharmaceutical agents.

Objective

The study aimed to analyze and investigate biological activities, including in vitro anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory and anti-diabetic properties, of metabolites from a marine-derived fungus belonging to P. levitum. The research focused on isolating and characterizing steroid components from the fungal strain and evaluating their biological activities.

Results

Three steroid compounds were isolated and identified: cerevisterol (1), ergosterol peroxide (2), and (3β,5α,22E)-ergosta-6,8(14),22-triene-3,5-diol (3). Compound 3 showed the most potent cytotoxicity against human cancer cell lines. Compound 2 exhibited the strongest anti-inflammatory effects with 81.37% NO inhibition at 25 μg/mL. Both compounds 2 and 3 demonstrated significant inhibitory activities against α-glucosidase with IC50 values of 21.89 and 25.81 μg/mL respectively, more potent than the control acarbose.

Conclusion

The study provided new data on the biological and chemical profile of marine-derived Penicillium levitum strain N33. Three major steroid components were isolated and characterized from the fungal culture broth. The findings contribute to filling knowledge gaps in Penicillium species biochemistry and provide new insights into the structures and biological activities of fungal constituents, particularly mycosteroids.
  • Published in:Mycobiology,
  • Study Type:Laboratory Research,
  • Source: 10.1080/12298093.2023.2248717
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