Alveolarin, a novel antifungal polypeptide from the wild mushroom Polyporus alveolaris

An antifungal polypeptide, with a molecular mass of 28 kDa as judged by gel filtration and appearing as a single band with a molecular mass of 14 kDa in sodium dodecyl suflate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, was isolated from fresh fruiting bodies of the mushroom Polyporus alveolaris. The antifungal polypeptide, designated as alveolarin, demonstrated an inhibitory action on mycelial growth in Botrytis cinerea, Fusarium oxysportan, Mycosphaerella arachidicola and Physalospora piricola. Alveolarin was isolated with a procedure that entailed ion exchange chromatography on DEAE-cellulose, affinity chromatography on Affi-gel blue gel, and gel filtration on Superdex 75 by fast protein liquid chromatography. (C) 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.