Biotechnology of Marine Fungi

Abstract

Filamentous fungi are the most widely used eukaryotes in industrial and pharmaceutical applications. Their biotechnological uses include the production of enzymes, vitamins, polysaccharides, pigments, lipids and others. Marine fungi are a still relatively unexplored group in biotechnology. Taxonomic and habitat diversity form the basis for exploration of marine fungal biotechnology. This review covers what is known of the potential applications of obligate and marine-derived fungi obtained from coastal to the oceanic and shallow water to the deep-sea habitats. Recent studies indicate that marine fungi are potential candidates for novel enzymes, bioremediation, biosurfactants, polysaccharides, polyunsaturated fatty acids and secondary metabolites. Future studies that focus on culturing rare and novel marine fungi, combined with knowledge of their physiology and biochemistry will provide a firm basis for marine mycotechnology.

Diverse Metabolic Capacities of Fungi for Bioremediation

“…The potential of marine fungi for production of secondary metabolites, biosurfactants, novel enzymes, polysaccharides and polyunsaturated fatty acids in addition to their application in bioremediation of hydrocarbons and heavy metals has been well documented [30]. Their ability to adapt to high saline conditions and pH extremes provides a biological advantage to these fungi over terrestrial fungi.…”

A model to predict anti-tuberculosis activity: value proposition for marine microorganisms

“…8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 In order to examine the potential of marine microbe-sourced natural products as effective TB agents, we conducted a comprehensive literature search covering the period up to December 2014. In total, 60 marine microbial compounds have been reported to show anti- M. tuberculosis activity in in vitro models.…”

Peer Review #2 of "Metagenomic analysis of orange colored protrusions from the muscle of Queen Conch Lobatus gigas (Linnaeus, 1758) (v0.1)"

“…Both Fusarium and Neurospora exhibit wide distribution, including humid tropical and subtropical marine environments (Steele, 1967;Turner, Perkins & Fairfield, 2001;Babu et al, 2010;Summerell et al, 2010;Jebaraj et al, 2012;Saravanan & Sivakumar, 2013;Kumar, Gousia & Latha, 2015). Specifically, some Fusarium species are associated with infections in crustaceans and cultivated fishes (Hatai, 2012), whereas other species are endosymbionts of some seaweeds (Suryanarayanan, 2012), corals (Raghukumar & Ravindran, 2012) and some sea sponges (Höller et al, 2000;Wang, Li & Zhu, 2008;Liu et al, 2010;Paz et al, 2010).…”

“…Manuscript to be reviewed native microbiota. Fungi findings suggest an environmental source; however, since some species of Fusarium and Neurospora produce orange spores (Davis & Perkins, 2002;Hatai, 2012), they may explain the colored protrusions found in L. gigas due to an opportunistic or primary infection. Thus, the role of bacteria and fungi in the muscle of L. gigas and their relationship with the lesion, native microbiota or the environment remains to be explored.…”