Endophytic fungus Cladosporium sp (AC-1) isolated from leaves of Annona cacans (Annonaceae) shows high metabolic plasticity to produce bioactive molecules

Endophytic microorganisms are one of the main resources to the search for new substances with biological potential in bioprospecting. The symbiotic association of Cladosporium sp. with plants shows high metabolic plasticity to produce bioactive molecules. In this study, ethyl acetate (EtOAc) extracts of Cladosporium sp. (AC-1 strain) isolated from leaves of Annona cacans Warm. (Annonaceae), a medicinal plant with edible fruits, were obtained from five culture media. Variations according to the culture medium used were found showing the best yield in YMB medium. In bioguided experiments, the antioxidant and antimicrobial activity of fungal crude extracts were determined employing ORAC-FL and microdilution broth methods respectively. Applying UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS analysis of bioactive extracts were identified compounds with antioxidant (coumaric acid and cinnamic acid) and antimicrobial activity (cladosporin and cladosporol B), showing the capacity of this endophytic fungus to the synthesis molecules with verified biological activity. In addition, Cladosporium sp. (AC-1) showed the potential to produce plant-specific compounds (organic acids and alkaloids) and its close relationship with the plant metabolism.