Isolation and characterization of Muscodor albus I-41.3s, a volatile antibiotic producing fungus

Muscodor albus is an endophytic fungus of tropical tree species that produces volatile organic compounds (VOC's) that have antibiotic activity. A new isolate of this organism has been obtained from a small, unidentified vine, generally used by the indigenous people of the Tesso Nilo region in Central Sumatra, Indonesia, to treat snakebites. This unique organism produces a number of VOC's not previously observed in other M. albus isolates including tetrohydofuran, 2-methyl furan; 2-butanone; aciphyllene, and large amounts of an unusual azulene derivative. Noticeably absent from the VOC mixture was 1-butanol, 3-methyl-. Scanning electron micrographs of the organism showed a unique fishnet-like deposit of what appears to be a biopolymer covering the hyphae. The ITS-5.8S rDNA partial sequence data showed 99% identity to the original M. albus strain cz-620. In addition, an artificial mixture of some of the VOC's produced by this new isolate generally mimicked the inhibitory as well as lethal effects of the fungal VOC's on the test microorganisms. One of the most sensitive test fungi was Stachybotrys chartarum, an organism associated with the “toxic mold” syndrome of buildings. Fungi belonging to the Muscodor genus regularly appear in tropical rainforests throughout the world and these isolates appear to have chemical, biological, and structural characteristics that make them potentially useful in medicine, agricultural and industrial applications.