Slime molds as a valuable source of antimicrobial agents

Abstract

Given the emerging multidrug-resistant pathogens, the number of effective antimicrobial agents to deal with the threat of bacterial and fungal resistance has fallen dramatically. Therefore, the critical solution to deal with the missing effective antibiotics is to research new sources or new synthetic antibiotics. Natural products have different advantages to be considered antimicrobial agents. There are different natural sources for antimicrobial agents, such as bacteria, fungi, algae, slime molds, and plants. This article has focused on antibiotics from slime molds, especially Myxomycetes. The reason why slime molds have been chosen to be studied is their unique bioactive metabolites, especially over the past couple of decades. Some of those metabolites have been demonstrated to possess antibiotic activities. Hence, this article has focused on the potential of these creatures as an alternative source of antibiotics.

Fuligopyrones from the Fruiting Bodies of Myxomycete Fuligo septica Offer Short-Term Protection from Abiotic Stress Induced by UV Radiation

“…The UV−vis spectrum of 1 featuring a λ max at 325 nm was searched against our in-house library of >10,000 microbial metabolites, with the closest match being identified as avenanthramide D. 21 Analysis of the NMR data for 1 (Table 1 and Table S1) indicated the presence of two subunits (Figure 2). (6), which was originally identified as a hydrolysis product of the avenalumamide derivatives AF-8 (7), AF-12, and AF-14. 22 The avenalumamide substructure is relatively rare, with the oat-derived avenanthramides 23,24 3) supported the proposed substructure.…”

“…Myxomycetes is a class of over 800 species of plasmodial slime molds that can form fruiting bodies (aethalia), although only under ideal conditions . The sporadic availability, low biomass, and poor culturability of myxomycetes have unsurprisingly resulted in a largely incomplete description of the secondary metabolite profile for most species, with fewer than 200 metabolites having been reported to date, − including several with antibacterial activity …”

“…1 The sporadic availability, low biomass, and poor culturability of myxomycetes have unsurprisingly resulted in a largely incomplete description of the secondary metabolite profile for most species, with fewer than 200 metabolites having been reported to date, 2−5 including several with antibacterial activity. 6 Fuligo is a widespread genus of plasmodial slime mold in the family Physaraceae. 7 F. septica, colloquially known as "dog vomit fungus", is probably the most easily recognized member and is found worldwide, including Australia.…”

“…Despite their unusual structures, no biological data have been reported for these metabolites, although other enriched pigments have been shown to have metal chelation properties 20 and antibacterial activity. 6 During the spring of 2018, wet and humid conditions in western Sydney, Australia, initiated the migration of F. septica plasmodia to form masses of aethalia, which were dispersed over several square miles on aged eucalyptus woodchips used as mulch in public spaces and gardens (Figure 1). Taking advantage of this rare event, we were able to harvest kilogram quantities of F. septica aethalia that had accumulated overnight.…”

Atividade Antimicrobiana De Extratos De Etálios De Lycogala Epidendrum (Liceales, Myxomycetes) Em Diferentes Fases De Amadurecimento

“…Nos plasmódios e esporocarpos de mixomicetos pertencentes a diferentes ordens e famílias tem sido identificada a presença de um amplo espectro de substâncias, muitas delas com atividade biológica evidenciada em testes de laboratório (STEGLICH, 1989;RIBEIRO et al, 2019;TAFAKORI, 2021). Os exopolisacarídeos que cobrem a superfície dos plasmódios de Physarella oblonga (Berk.…”