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Metabolites
Special Issues
Therapeutic Potentials of Secondary Metabolites from Plants, Microbes and Endophytes
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Therapeutic Potentials of Secondary Metabolites from Plants, Microbes and Endophytes

A special issue of Metabolites (ISSN 2218-1989). This special issue belongs to the section "Pharmacology and Drug Metabolism".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 December 2023) | Viewed by 8994

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Rabab Mohammed

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Beni-Suef University, Beni-Suef 62514, Egypt
Interests: natural products chemistry
Dr. Dalia El Amir Mohamed

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Beni-Suef University, Beni-Suef 62514, Egypt
Interests: natural products chemistry
Dr. Marwa Hassan Ahmed Hassan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacognosy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Beni-Suef University, Beni-Suef 62514, Egypt
Interests: natural products chemistry

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Natural products derived from microbes and endophytes have diverse pharmacological effects with antibiotic, antidiabetic, antiviral, and antitumor activities. These bioactive compounds are commonly used in foods, cosmetics, and nursing products. Medicinal plants and fungi represent the main source for bioactive natural products. However, the extraction of such compounds from plants and fungi is time-consuming and costly due to structural complexity, low product concentration, and the lengthy plantation period. Microbes as well as endophytes have been recognized as potential sources for the discovery of novel natural products for exploitation in medicine, agriculture, and industry. It is noteworthy that among all plant species that exist on Earth, each individual plant hosts at least one endophyte. They are the chemical synthesizers inside plants; they synthesize bioactive compounds that can be used by plants for defense against pathogens, and some of these compounds have been proven useful for novel drug discovery. Recent studies have reported hundreds of natural products including alkaloids, terpenoids, flavonoids, steroids, and others from endophytes and microbes.

This Special Issue aims to cover promising, recent, and novel research trends in studying endophytes and microbes as a source for bioactive metabolites. This issue may also cover but is not limited to the following topics:

  • Discovery of genes involved in the biosynthetic pathway of natural products in endophytes and microbes.
  • Metabolomic study of microbes’ and endophytes’ metabolites.
  • Assessment of the biological activity of natural products obtained from natural sources.
  • Isolation and functional research of natural products from plants, endophytes, and microbes.
  • Drug discovery and in silico studies against different biological conditions.

Prof. Dr. Rabab Mohammed
Dr. Dalia El Amir Mohamed
Dr. Marwa Hassan Ahmed Hassan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Metabolites is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

 

Keywords

  • secondary metabolites
  • endophytes
  • microbes
  • alkaloids
  • phenolic compounds
  • metabolomics
  • biosynthesis

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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14 pages, 1948 KiB  
Article
In Silico Analysis of Novel Bacterial Metabolites with Anticancer Activities
by Pfariso Maumela and Mahloro Hope Serepa-Dlamini
Metabolites 2024, 14(3), 163; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo14030163 - 13 Mar 2024
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2209
Abstract
Resistance to anticancer therapeutics is a major global concern. Thus, new anticancer agents should be aimed against novel protein targets to effectively mitigate the increased resistance. This study evaluated the potential of secondary metabolites from a bacterial endophyte, as new anticancer agents, against [...] Read more.
Resistance to anticancer therapeutics is a major global concern. Thus, new anticancer agents should be aimed against novel protein targets to effectively mitigate the increased resistance. This study evaluated the potential of secondary metabolites from a bacterial endophyte, as new anticancer agents, against a novel protein target, fibroblast growth factor. In silico genomic characterization of the Bacillus sp. strain MHSD_37 was used to identify potential genes involved in encoding secondary metabolites with biological activity. The strain was also exposed to stress and liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry used for the identification and annotation of secondary metabolites of oligopeptide class with anticancer activity. Selected metabolites were evaluated for their anticancer activity through molecular docking and Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, Excretion and Toxicity (ADMET) properties analysis. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that strain MHSD_37 shared close evolutionary relationships with Bacillus at the species level, with no identified relationships at the sub-species level. Both in silico genomic characterization and spectrometry analysis identified secondary metabolites with potential anticancer activity. Molecular docking analysis illustrated that the metabolites formed complexes with the target protein, fibroblast growth factor, which were stabilized by hydrogen bonds. Moreover, the ADMET analysis showed that the metabolites passed the toxicity test for use as a potential drug. Thereby, Bacillus sp. strain MHSD_37 is a potential novel strain with oligopeptide metabolites that can be used as new anticancer agents against novel protein targets. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Therapeutic Potentials of Secondary Metabolites from Plants, Microbes and Endophytes)
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21 pages, 3964 KiB  
Article
Unveiling the Pharmacological Significance of Marine Streptomyces violaceusniger KS20: Isolation, Characterization, and Assessment of Its Biomedical Applications
by Bidhayak Chakraborty, Kariyellappa Nagaraja Shashiraj, Raju Suresh Kumar, Meghashyama Prabhakara Bhat, Dhanyakumara Shivapoojar Basavarajappa, Abdulrahman I. Almansour, Karthikeyan Perumal and Sreenivasa Nayaka
Metabolites 2023, 13(9), 1022; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13091022 - 19 Sep 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1435
Abstract
Marine actinomycetes represent a highly favorable source of bioactive compounds and have been the mainstay of much research in recent years. Recent reports have shown that marine Streptomyces sp. can produce compounds with diverse and potent biological activities. Therefore, the key objective of [...] Read more.
Marine actinomycetes represent a highly favorable source of bioactive compounds and have been the mainstay of much research in recent years. Recent reports have shown that marine Streptomyces sp. can produce compounds with diverse and potent biological activities. Therefore, the key objective of the study was to isolate and screen a potential actinomycete from marine ecosystems of Devbagh and Tilmati beaches, Karwar. Streptomyces sp. KS20 was characterized and the ethyl acetate extract (EtOAc-Ex) was screened for biomedical applications. Streptomyces sp. KS20 produced grayish-white aerial and pale-yellow substrate mycelia and revealed an ancestral relationship with Streptomyces violaceusniger. Optimum growth of the organism was recorded at 30 °C and pH 7.0. The metabolite profiling of EtOAc-Ex expressed the existence of several bioactive metabolites, whereas the functional groups were indicated by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. A considerable antioxidant activity was shown for EtOAc-Ex with IC50 of 92.56 μg/mL. In addition to this, Streptomyces sp. KS20 exhibited significant antimicrobial properties, particularly against Escherichia coli, where a zone of inhibition measuring 36 ± 0.83 mm and a minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 3.12 µg/mL were observed. The EtOAc-Ex even revealed significant antimycobacterial potency with IC50 of 6.25 μg/mL. Finally, the antiproliferative potentiality of EtOAc-Ex against A549 and PC-3 cell lines revealed a constant decline in cell viability while raising the concentration of EtOAc-Ex from 12.5 to 200 μg/mL. The IC50 values were determined as 94.73 μg/mL and 121.12 μg/mL for A549 and PC-3 cell lines, respectively. Overall, the exploration of secondary metabolites from marine Streptomyces sp. KS20 represents an exciting area of further research with the potential to discover novel bioactive compounds that could be developed into therapeutics for various medical applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Therapeutic Potentials of Secondary Metabolites from Plants, Microbes and Endophytes)
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29 pages, 7446 KiB  
Article
Potentiality of Actinomycetia Prevalent in Selected Forest Ecosystems in Assam, India to Combat Multi-Drug-Resistant Microbial Pathogens
by Rajkumari Mazumdar, Kangkon Saikia and Debajit Thakur
Metabolites 2023, 13(8), 911; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13080911 - 3 Aug 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2143
Abstract
Actinomycetia are known for their ability to produce a wide range of bioactive secondary metabolites having significant therapeutic importance. This study aimed to explore the potential of actinomycetia as a source of bioactive compounds with antimicrobial properties against multi-drug-resistant (MDR) clinical pathogens. A [...] Read more.
Actinomycetia are known for their ability to produce a wide range of bioactive secondary metabolites having significant therapeutic importance. This study aimed to explore the potential of actinomycetia as a source of bioactive compounds with antimicrobial properties against multi-drug-resistant (MDR) clinical pathogens. A total of 65 actinomycetia were isolated from two unexplored forest ecosystems, namely the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary (PWS) and the Deepor Beel Wildlife Sanctuary (DBWS), located in the Indo-Burma mega-biodiversity hotspots of northeast India, out of which 19 isolates exhibited significant antimicrobial activity. 16S rRNA gene sequencing was used for the identification and phylogenetic analysis of the 19 potent actinomycetia isolates. The results reveal that the most dominant genus among the isolates was Streptomyces (84.21%), followed by rare actinomycetia genera such as Nocardia, Actinomadura, and Nonomuraea. Furthermore, seventeen of the isolates tested positive for at least one antibiotic biosynthetic gene, specifically type II polyketide synthase (PKS-II) and nonribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPSs). These genes are associated with the production of bioactive compounds with antimicrobial properties. Among the isolated strains, three actinomycetia strains, namely Streptomyces sp. PBR1, Streptomyces sp. PBR36, and Streptomyces sp. DBR11, demonstrated the most potent antimicrobial activity against seven test pathogens. This was determined through in vitro antimicrobial bioassays and the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of ethyl acetate extracts. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GS-MS) and whole-genome sequencing (WGS) of the three strains revealed a diverse group of bioactive compounds and secondary metabolite biosynthetic gene clusters (smBGCs), respectively, indicating their high therapeutic potential. These findings highlight the potential of these microorganisms to serve as a valuable resource for the discovery and development of novel antibiotics and other therapeutics with high therapeutic potential. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Therapeutic Potentials of Secondary Metabolites from Plants, Microbes and Endophytes)
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13 pages, 1591 KiB  
Article
Panapophenanthrin, a Rare Oligocyclic Diterpene from Panus strigellus
by Natalia A. Llanos-López, Sherif Saeed Ebada, Aída M. Vasco-Palacios, Laura M. Sánchez-Giraldo, Lina López, Luisa F. Rojas, Attila Mándi, Tibor Kurtán and Yasmina Marin-Felix
Metabolites 2023, 13(7), 848; https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13070848 - 13 Jul 2023
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1637
Abstract
During the course of our search for biologically active secondary metabolites from fungal cultures, a new oligocyclic diterpenoidal derivative, panapophenanthrin (1), was isolated from Panus strigellus. In addition, two known metabolites, panepophenanthrin (2) and dihydrohypnophilin (3), [...] Read more.
During the course of our search for biologically active secondary metabolites from fungal cultures, a new oligocyclic diterpenoidal derivative, panapophenanthrin (1), was isolated from Panus strigellus. In addition, two known metabolites, panepophenanthrin (2) and dihydrohypnophilin (3), were also obtained. The chemical structures of the isolated compounds were elucidated based on extensive 1D and 2D NMR spectral analyses together with high-resolution electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (HR-ESI-MS). The absolute configuration was determined through TDDFT-ECD calculations. All of the compounds were assessed for their antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities. Compounds 1 and 3 showed moderate to weak activities in the performed antimicrobial assays, while compound 1 exhibited potent cytotoxic activity against the mammalian cell lines mouse fibroblast (L929) and human endocervical adenocarcinoma (KB3.1). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Therapeutic Potentials of Secondary Metabolites from Plants, Microbes and Endophytes)
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