Extremophilic Fungi: Potential Applications in Sustainable Agriculture

Tolerance of Rare-Earth Elements in Extremophile Fungus Umbelopsis isabellina from Polar Loparite Ore Tailings in Northwestern Russia

“…. Cold-tolerant microfungi known as psychrophiles have been found in the polar soils, water, snow, ice and rocks [2,7,8,[10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]. For instance, mycelial fungi have been isolated from cryopegs (mineralized headwater lenses below the Arctic massive ground ice bodies) in the Kolyma lowland of northeastern Russia [2].…”

“…For instance, mycelial fungi have been isolated from cryopegs (mineralized headwater lenses below the Arctic massive ground ice bodies) in the Kolyma lowland of northeastern Russia [2]. These microorganisms have gained wide attention due to their ability to produce cold-adapted enzymes and bioactive natural compounds with an exceptional application potential in the pharmaceutical field, including antioxidants, antibiotics, anticancer and antidiabetic drugs, and sunscreens [6,8,10,20,21]. In particular, some Arctic and Antarctic aquatic fungi have been proven to be a source of α-glycosidase inhibitors, which are regarded as effective antidiabetic drugs [8,21].…”

“…In particular, some Arctic and Antarctic aquatic fungi have been proven to be a source of α-glycosidase inhibitors, which are regarded as effective antidiabetic drugs [8,21]. Some representatives of this group, the endolithic microfungi, can also colonize bare rocks in hot and cold deserts [4,10,12,18,19]. Endolithic communities play an important role in global biogeochemical processes; they participate in the bioweathering and transformation of rocks and minerals, as they are able to form young soils and mycorrhiza for pioneer plant species [4,23].…”

“…These abilities mean that endoliths are capable of acting as pioneering microorganisms that can modify uninhabited environments [4,19,23]. Thus, these microfungi may represent models for astrobiological studies [10,12,17,19]. Microfungi from these and other extreme environments (extremophiles) exhibit special morphological and physiological adaptations to avoid different stresses [10,19].…”

“…Thus, these microfungi may represent models for astrobiological studies [10,12,17,19]. Microfungi from these and other extreme environments (extremophiles) exhibit special morphological and physiological adaptations to avoid different stresses [10,19]. The study of these extremophile fungi may provide tools for understanding the molecular processes that allow them to maintain metabolic activity under conditions that are lethal for most organisms.…”