Bioactive Components of the Traditionally used Mushroom Podaxis pistillaris

Abstract

In the course of an ethnobotanical study on fungi used in Yemeni ethnomedicine the fungusPodaxis pistillaris(Podaxales, Podaxaceae, Basidiomycetes) was found to exhibit antibacterial activity againstStaphylococcus aureus,Micrococcus flavus,Bacillus subtilis,Proteus mirabilis,Serratia marcescensandEscherichia coli. In the culture medium ofP. pistillaristhree epidithiodiketopiperazines were identified by activity-guided isolation. Based on spectral data (NMR, ESI-MS and DCI-MS) their identity was established as epicorazine A (1), epicorazine B (2) and epicorazine C (3, antibiotic F 3822), which have not been reported as constituents ofP. pistillarispreviously. It is assumed that the identified compounds contribute to the antibacterial activity of the extract.