Endophytes isolated from passion fruit plants: Molecular identification, chemical characterization and antibacterial activity of secondary metabolites

Abstract

Endophytic fungi inhabit the interior of healthy plants without any apparent harm and may synthesize bioactive compounds, which constitute an alternative for the control of human pathogens. Current study reports the molecular identification of two endophytes from passion fruit plants: isolate PE1-13 (from Passiflora edulis f. flavicarpa) has been identified as Phyllosticta sp. and isolate PA8-2 (from Passiflora alata) is a Cercospora beticola strain. Thin layer chromatography showed that steroids and triterpenoids were present in the secondary metabolites produced by the two endophytes. The antibacterial assay against Enterococcus faecalis, Salmonella typhi and Streptococcus pyogenes indicated that the fungal metabolites reduced up to 98.1±0.5% of bacterial growth. Results suggest that these endophytes are capable of producing antibacterial compounds.