title: Phylogenetic Diversity of Sponge-Associated Fungi from the Caribbean and the Pacific of Panama and Their In Vitro Effect on Angiotensin and Endothelin Receptors.
abstract: Fungi occupy an important ecological niche in the marine environment, and marine fungi possess an immense biotechnological potential. This study documents the fungal diversity associated with 39 species of sponges and determines their potential to produce secondary metabolites capable of interacting with mammalian G-protein-coupled receptors involved in blood pressure regulation. Total genomic DNA was extracted from 563 representative fungal strains obtained from marine sponges collected by SCUBA from the Caribbean and the Pacific regions of Panama. A total of 194 operational taxonomic units were found with 58% represented by singletons based on the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and partial large subunit (LSU) rDNA regions. Marine sponges were highly dominated by Ascomycota fungi (95.6%) and represented by two major classes, Sordariomycetes and Dothideomycetes. Rarefaction curves showed no saturation, indicating that further efforts are needed to reveal the entire diversity at this site. Several unique clades were found during phylogenetic analysis with the highest diversity of unique clades in the order Pleosporales. From the 65 cultures tested to determine their in vitro effect on angiotensin and endothelin receptors, the extracts of Fusarium sp. and Phoma sp. blocked the activation of these receptors by more than 50% of the control and seven others inhibited between 30 and 45%. Our results indicate that marine sponges from Panama are a "hot spot" of fungal diversity as well as a rich resource for capturing, cataloguing, and assessing the pharmacological potential of substances present in previously undiscovered fungi associated with marine sponges.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Scientific Research and High Technology Services, Bld. 219, City of Knowledge, Clayton, Panama, Republic of Panama.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bolaños
authors.forename: Luis Fernando
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: De León
authors.forename: Edgardo
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ochoa
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Darias
authors.forename: Huzefa A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Raja
authors.forename: Carol A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Shearer
authors.forename: Andrew N
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: Patrick
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Vanderheyden
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Porras-Alfaro
authors.forename: Catherina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Caballero-George
mesh_terms: D000809:Angiotensins; D000818:Animals; D001203:Ascomycota / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics; D044822:Biodiversity; D017691:Caribbean Region; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal / Q000235:genetics; D021903:DNA, Ribosomal Spacer / Q000235:genetics; D005658:Fungi / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics*; D010176:Panama; D010802:Phylogeny; D011161:Porifera / Q000382:microbiology*; D017466:Receptors, Endothelin / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000809:Angiotensins; D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D021903:DNA, Ribosomal Spacer; D017466:Receptors, Endothelin