Osman Mohamed E, Abou-Zeid Alaa M, Abu-Saied Mohamed A, Ayid Maha M, El-Zawawy Nessma A
Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Helwan University, Cairo, Egypt.
Department of Botany and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt.
Sci Rep. 2025 Jun 3;15(1):19494. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-01202-z.
The use of medicinal plants in marginal communities was for the treatment of various ailments for centuries. Nevertheless, the potential of endophytic fungi (EF) associated with bioprospecting medicinal plants remains understudied. Research on the diversity of EF associated with various Egyptian medicinal plants remains limited. Therefore, our study conducted an analysis and comparison of the colonization frequency (CF), richness, and diversity indices of EF communities that inhabit nine different medicinal plants located in two different areas: the Protected Area of Wadi Degla in Maadi and the Natural Cultivated Area in Helwan, Egypt. These plants were Agathophora alopecuroides, Anabasis setifera, Atriplex halimus, Halocnemum strobitaceum, Lantana camara, Mesembryanthemum forsskaollii, Raphanus raphanistrum, Suaeda vermiculata, and Zygophyllum coccineum. Also, the antimicrobial and antioxidant potential of isolated EF has been investigated. A total of 39 morphospecies EF were isolated and identified, belonging to fifteen genera. Aspergillus spp. and Penicillium spp. were the dominant genera identified in the selected plants. A. setifera and S. vermiculata plants had the highest numbers of EF isolates, followed by M. forsskaollii and R. raphanistrum. Furthermore, these plants had a significant diversity index and species richness compared to other plants investigated. The most predominant EF was Aspergillus sp.3, which had the highest occurrence rate. Among all EF ethyl acetate extracts (EAEs), Aspergillus sp.3 demonstrated the highest antimicrobial activities against different human pathogenic bacteria, yeasts, and fungi. Furthermore, it showed the highest 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) free radical scavenging activity. Therefore, this isolate was reidentified molecularly as Aspergillus terreus AUMC16223 with accession number PP491988. Moreover, EAE of A. terreus endophyte showed cytotoxicity potential activity with the significant IC value of 41.75 ± 1.83 µg/mL for the human lung carcinoma cell line (A549) and a nontoxic effect on the normal cell line (WI 38) with the significant CC value of 196.2 ± 3.74 µg/mL. Our results indicated diverse EF communities associated with different Egyptian medicinal plants, showing A. terreus endophyte extract as the most significant antimicrobial, antioxidant, and cytotoxic agent.
几个世纪以来，边缘社区一直使用药用植物来治疗各种疾病。然而，与药用植物生物勘探相关的内生真菌（EF）的潜力仍未得到充分研究。关于与各种埃及药用植物相关的EF多样性的研究仍然有限。因此，我们的研究对栖息在埃及两个不同地区的九种不同药用植物中的EF群落的定殖频率（CF）、丰富度和多样性指数进行了分析和比较，这两个地区分别是马阿迪的瓦迪德格拉保护区和赫尔万的自然种植区。这些植物分别是凌风草状银胶菊、刺基假木贼、滨藜、盐生草、马缨丹、福氏日中花、野萝卜、蠕形碱蓬和红色霸王。此外，还研究了分离出的EF的抗菌和抗氧化潜力。共分离并鉴定出39个形态种的EF，属于15个属。曲霉属和青霉属是在所选植物中鉴定出的优势属。刺基假木贼和蠕形碱蓬植物的EF分离株数量最多，其次是福氏日中花和野萝卜。此外，与其他被研究的植物相比，这些植物具有显著的多样性指数和物种丰富度。最主要的EF是曲霉sp.3，其出现率最高。在所有EF乙酸乙酯提取物（EAE）中，曲霉sp.3对不同的人类病原菌、酵母和真菌表现出最高的抗菌活性。此外，它还表现出最高的2,2-二苯基-1-苦基肼（DPPH）自由基清除活性。因此，该分离株经分子鉴定为土曲霉AUMC16223，登录号为PP491988。此外，土曲霉内生菌的EAE对人肺癌细胞系（A549）显示出细胞毒性潜在活性，其显著IC值为41.75±1.83μg/mL，对正常细胞系（WI 38）无毒性作用，显著CC值为196.2±3.74μg/mL。我们的结果表明，不同的埃及药用植物与多样的EF群落相关，土曲霉内生菌提取物是最显著的抗菌、抗氧化和细胞毒性剂。
