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(IC 50 = 2.10 mg/ml). Mohana et al . (2012)
investigated a Fusarium proliferatum strain
endophytic of Dysoxylum binectariferum
Hook. f (Meliaceae). The strain produces
rohitukine, which showed cytotoxicity
against the human cell lines HCT-116 and
MCF-7 (IC 50 = 10 mg/ml).
mycoendophyte isolated from Vaccinium
myrtillus showed the greatest activity on
M. aurum (Gordien et al ., 2010). It is clear
that mycoendophytes serve as a source of
potentially useful medicinal compounds.
5.2.3 Mycoendophytes
and antimalarial activity
5.2.2 Mycoendophytes
and antituberculosis activity
Malaria is a disease caused by a single cell of
the obligate intracellular parasite Plasmodium
and is a major cause of mortality and morbid-
ity worldwide. These parasites have a com-
plex life cycle in their mosquito vector and
vertebrate hosts. The primary factors contrib-
uting to the resurgence of malaria are the
appearance of drug-resistant strains of the
parasite, the spread of insecticide-resistant
strains of the mosquito and the lack of
licensed malaria vaccines of proven efficacy.
Plasmodium falciparum is the most danger-
ous species for humans because it can cause
acute infection leading to kidney and liver
failure, coma and even death. This parasite
is transmitted to humans by the female
Anopheles mosquito. Chloroquine is the most
common antimalarial drug because it is easily
obtained, cheap and has few side effects.
Now chloroquine is the first-line drug for
malaria treatment without any complications.
However, P. falciparum developed resistance
to chloroquine and other antimalarial drugs.
Endophytic fungi are a promising source of
novel therapeutic agents and are of particular
interest in the treatment of leishmaniasis and
malaria. Martínez-Luis et al . (2011) reported
that Stenocarpella sp. (strain F0275), Nectria
sp. (strain F1491), and Mycosphaerella sp.
(strain F2140) inhibited more than 90% the
proliferation of P. falciparum with respect to a
control. Other endophytes also showed anti-
malarial activity, e.g. Xylaria spp. found in
dead wood. One of its species was isolated
from Siparuna sp. (Jimenez-Romero et al .,
2008). Srinuan et al . (2007) reported antimal-
arial activity against P. falciparum of two
novel benzoquinone metabolites, 2-chloro-5-
methoxy-3-methylcyclohexa-2,5-diene-1,4-
dione and xylariaquinone, isolated from
Xylaria sp. Elfita et al . (2011) isolated two
An increasing incidence of deaths due to
tuberculosis and the known drawbacks of the
current existing drugs, including the emer-
gence of multidrug-resistant strains, have led to
a renewed interest in the discovery of new
antitubercular agents. Tuberculosis is a
chronic infectious disease and one of the
major enemies of humanity from ancient
times. Today, it still remains one of the most
serious medical and social problems. It is
responsible for 3 million deaths per year and
around 8 million cases of first-recorded dis-
ease (Rogoza et al., 2011). The advances in the
chemotherapy of tuberculosis in the mid-20th
century have recently given way to anxiety
over the evolution of drug resistance based
on the genetically fixed mutations of
Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Copp and
Pearce, 2007). Moreover, nearly all drugs used
for the treatment of tuberculosis and possess-
ing different mechanisms of activity are able
to cause adverse side effects in humans. It is
therefore extremely important to search for
new, low-toxic substances superior to the
available drugs in their activity and effi-
ciency. Metabolites synthesized by endo-
phytic strains of Phomopsis , 3-nitropropionic
acid and phomoxanthone, exhibited a mini-
mum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of
0.4 mg/ml and 0.5 mg/ml on M. tuberculosis
H37Ra, respectively (Bastian et al ., 2000).
Tuberculosis infections caused by dif-
ferent species of mycobacteria are continu-
ously increasing. Gordien et al . (2010) screened
the antimicrobial activity of extracts from
Scottish plants, lichens and mycoendophy-
tes on Mycobacterium aurum and M. tuber-
culosis . Extracts of Juniperus communis
roots, the lichen Cladonia arbuscula and a
 
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