Chemical Profile and Biological Activities of Fungal Strains Isolated from Piper nigrum Roots: Experimental and Computational Approaches

The current report describes the chemical investigation and biological activity of extracts produced by three fungal strains Fusarium oxysporum, Penicillium simplicissimum, and Fusarium proliferatum isolated from the roots of Piper nigrum L. growing in Vietnam. These fungi were namely determined by morphological and DNA analyses. GC/MS identification revealed that the EtOAc extracts of these fungi were associated with the presence of saturated and unsaturated fatty acids. These EtOAc extracts showed cytotoxicity towards cancer cell lines HepG2, inhibited various microbacterial organisms, especially fungus Aspergillus niger and yeast Candida albicans (the MIC values of 50-100 mu g/mL). In alpha-glucosidase inhibitory assay, they induced the IC50 values of 1.00-2.53 mu g/mL were better than positive control acarbose (169.80 mu g/mL). The EtOAc extract of F. oxysporum also showed strong anti-inflammatory activity against NO production and PGE-2 level. Four major compounds linoleic acid (37.346 %), oleic acid (27.520 %), palmitic acid (25.547 %), and stearic acid (7.030 %) from the EtOAc extract of F. oxysporum were selective in molecular docking study, by which linoleic and oleic acids showed higher binding affinity towards alpha-glucosidase than palmitic and stearic acids. In subsequent docking assay with inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), palmitic acid, oleic acid and linoleic acid could be moderate inhibitors.

Automated summary

This study investigates the chemical properties and biological activities of extracts from three fungal strains isolated from the roots of Piper nigrum L. in Vietnam. The extracts showed cytotoxicity against HepG2 cancer cells, inhibited microbial organisms, and exhibited anti-inflammatory and α-glucosidase inhibitory activities. Molecular docking analysis revealed the selective binding of certain fatty acids to target enzymes. The findings highlight the potential of these fungal extracts for further development as therapeutic agents.