Antioxidant, Antibacterial and Dyeing Potential of Crude Pigment Extract of Gonatophragmium triuniae and Its Chemical Characterization

Abstract

Filamentous fungi synthesize natural products as an ecological function. In this study, an interesting indigenous fungus producing orange pigment exogenously was investigated in detail as it possesses additional attributes along with colouring properties. An interesting fungus was isolated from a dicot plant, Maytenus rothiana. After a detailed study, the fungal isolate turned out to be a species of Gonatophragmium belonging to the family Acrospermaceae. Based on the morphological, cultural, and sequence-based phylogenetic analysis, the identity of this fungus was confirmed as Gonatophragmium triuniae. Although this fungus grows moderately, it produces good amounts of pigment on an agar medium. The fermented crude extract isolated from G. triuniae has shown antioxidant activity with an IC50 value of 0.99 mg/mL and antibacterial activity against Gram-positive bacteria (with MIC of 3.91 μg/mL against Bacillus subtilis, and 15.6 μg/mL and 31.25 μg/mL for Staphylococcus aureus and Micrococcus luteus, respectively). Dyeing of cotton fabric mordanted with FeSO4 using crude pigment was found to be satisfactory based on visual observation, suggesting its possible use in the textile industry. The orange pigment was purified from the crude extract by preparative HP-TLC. In addition, UV-Vis, FTIR, HRMS and NMR (1H NMR, 13C NMR), COSY, and DEPT analyses revealed the orange pigment to be “1,2-dimethoxy-3H-phenoxazin-3-one” (C14H11NO4, m/z 257). To our understanding, the present study is the first comprehensive report on Gonatophragmium triuniae as a potential pigment producer, reporting “1,2-dimethoxy-3H-phenoxazin-3-one” as the main pigment from the crude hexane extract. Moreover, this is the first study reporting antioxidant, antibacterial, and dyeing potential of crude extract of G. triuniae, suggesting possible potential applications of pigments and other bioactive secondary metabolites of the G. triuniae in textile and pharmaceutical industry.

Fungal Pigments: Carotenoids, Riboflavin, and Polyketides with Diverse Applications

“…Only nine fungal genera-Aspergillus, Monascus, Chaetomium, Penicillium, Hypoxylon, Muycopron, Phomopsis, Talaromyces, and Pleosporales-had azaphilones had isolated from them [157]. The oldest known source of azaphilone colors is a genus of fungi called Monuscus, which is still regarded as one of the most prolific producers of pigments in modern times [158]. Azaphilones pigments are a category of secondary metabolites produced by Monascus sp.…”

Antioxidant and antimicrobial screening of an unidentified yellow pigmented marine-derived fungus

“…After the visualization was carried out, followed by detection using specific reagents with the addition of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), vanillin-H2SO4, and FeCL3 reagents. Afterwards, the spot's Rf value was calculated [7,8,9]. In addition, a -carotene was prepared by dissolving it in chloroform.…”

“…Furthermore, a study conducted by Lagashetti et al [9] reported that crude pigment extract of Gonatophragmium triuniae had antioxidant activity. Fungus Monascus purpureus and Penicillium mallochii were also known to produce several pigments with antibacterial and antioxidant properties [35,36].…”

Multifarious pigment producing fungi of Western Ghats and their potential

“…Since the fungal pigments naturally possess antioxidant properties, they have a potential in textile industries reducing the need for the use of coated antioxidants in fabrics (93). Another endophytic fungus, Talaromyces purpureogenus KKP was isolated and characterized from the soil in Keekan village, Kasaragod district, which had good antioxidant activity and lower IC50 value, indicating good potential as a food colorant (112).…”