A ribonuclease with antimicrobial, antimitogenic and antiproliferative activities from the edible mushroom Pleurotus sajor-caju

The prospect of mushroom as an alterative protein: From acquisition routes to nutritional quality, biological activity, application and beyond

There is a need for new protein sources to sustainably feed the world. Mushroom proteins are regarded as a future protein alternative considering their low cost, high nutritional quality, and excellent digestibility, have attracted increasing attention. Proteins with multiple structural characteristics endow mushroom with various bioactivities, which has also broadened application of mushroom in nutrition, food fields, as well as in emerging industries. Therefore, the present review narrates the recent developments in nutritional quality of mushroom proteins, while paying considerable attention to cultivation technologies and preparation strategies of mushroom proteins. Moreover, the types, properties and biological benefits of mushroom proteins were summarized, herein the latest research on applications of mushroom or their proteins was highlighted. Eventually, the challenges confronting their widespread utility, despite their high nutritional content were discussed. This review would provide a new appreciation for the future use of mushroom proteins.

Antibacterial and Antifungal Activity of Metabolites from Basidiomycetes: A Review

Background/Objectives: The search for new antimicrobial molecules is important to expand the range of available drugs, as well as to overcome the drug resistance of pathogens. One of the promising sources of antibacterial and antifungal metabolites is basidial fungi, which have wide biosynthetic capabilities. Methods: The review summarized the results of studying the antimicrobial activity of extracts and metabolites from basidiomycetes published from 2018-2023. Results: In all studies, testing for antibacterial and antifungal activity was carried out in in vitro experiments. To obtain the extracts, mainly the fruiting bodies of basidiomycetes, as well as their mycelia and culture liquid were used. Antimicrobial activity was found in aqueous, methanol, and ethanol extracts. Antimicrobial metabolites of basidiomycetes were isolated mainly from the submerged culture of basidiomycetes. Metabolites active against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and mycelial and yeast-like fungi were identified. Conclusions: Basidiomycete extracts and metabolites have shown activity against collectible strains of bacteria and fungi and multi-resistant and clinical strains of pathogenic bacteria. The minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of the most active metabolites ranged from 1 to 16.7 µg/mL.

Comprehensive Review on Herbal Medicine: Emphasis on Current Therapy and Role of Phytoconstituents for Cancer Treatment

INTRODUCTION

Cancer poses a significant public health challenge in both developed and developing nations, with a rising global incidence of patients facing the threat of death due to abnormal cell proliferation.

AIM

Review explores the utilization of different parts of herbal medicinal plants and their active pharmaceutical constituents in the prevention and treatment of various types of cancer.

METHODOLOGY

Various anticancer medicinal plants have been identified, demonstrating their therapeutic effects by inhibiting cancer-stimulating enzymes and hormones, activating DNA repair processes, boosting the synthesis of protective stimulants, reducing the formation of free radicals, and enhancing individual immunity. Data for this study were gathered from diverse online bibliographic and databases, including Google, Google Scholar, Mendeley, Springer Link, Research Gate, and PubMed.

RESULT

Herbal drugs have a huge contribution to the inhibition of the progression of cancer.A large volume of clinical studies has reported the beneficial effects of herbal medicines on the survival, immune modulation, and quality of life (QOL) of cancer patients, when these herbal medicines are used in combination with conventional therapeutics.

CONCLUSION

The latest medicines for the clinical purpose (Above 50 %) are derived from herbal products. Furthermore, combination of these herbs with nanotechnology shows promise in treating specific carcinomas.

Natural Compounds of Fungal Origin with Antimicrobial Activity-Potential Cosmetics Applications

The phenomenon of drug resistance in micro-organisms necessitates the search for new compounds capable of combating them. Fungi emerge as a promising source of such compounds as they produce a wide range of secondary metabolites with bacteriostatic or fungistatic activity. These compounds can serve as alternatives for commonly used antibiotics. Furthermore, fungi also accumulate compounds with antiviral activity. This review focuses on filamentous fungi and macrofungi as sources of antimicrobial compounds. The article describes both individual isolated compounds and extracts that exhibit antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral activity. These compounds are produced by the fruiting bodies and mycelium, as well as the biomass of mycelial cultures. Additionally, this review characterizes the chemical compounds extracted from mushrooms used in the realm of cosmetology; specifically, their antimicrobial activity.

Appraisal of Antioxidant Potential and Natural Bioactive Compound Determination through HPLC from Two Saprotrophic Amanita (Agaricomycetes) Species from Pakistan

The present study was carried out to investigate and identify bioactive compounds along with antioxidant capacity, total flavonoids and total phenolic contents from two saprophytic Amanita species, i.e., mushrooms A. manicata (Berk. & Broome) Pegler and A. nana Singer. Antioxidant potential was assessed by DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) free radical scavenging and ABTS (2,2'-azino-bis-3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) assay, total phenolics, and flavonoids. Both mushrooms were found to possess antioxidants and wide range of phenolics and bioactive compounds. There was maximum percent inhibition (83.2 ± 0.120%) on DPPH by A. manicata. However, maximum percent inhibition using ABTS was found to be 79.5 ± 0.251% by A. nana. Similarly, A. nana possesses maximum amount of both flavonoids and phenolics i.e., 0.3473 ± 0.0088 mg/100 g of catechin and 0.097 ± 0.0011 mg/100 g of GAE equivalent, respectively. Both mushrooms exhibited a variety of natural compounds such as P-coumaric acid, M-coumaric acid, benzoic acid, ferulic acid etc. Ferulic acid, chlorogenic acid, and cinnamic acid were also detected in A. manicata. A. manicata exhibited best and greater antiradical potential than A. nana due the presence of excessive natural bioactive compounds. From the reported results, it was revealed that both inedible mushrooms could be a potential source of antioxidants and secondary metabolites and might be used for making novel drugs in future by pharmaceutical industries.

Machine learning-enabled predictive modeling to precisely identify the antimicrobial peptides

The ubiquitous antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), with a broad range of antimicrobial activities, represent a great promise for combating the multi-drug resistant infections. In this study, using a large and diverse set of AMPs (2638) and non-AMPs (3700), we have explored a variety of machine learning classifiers to build in silico models for AMP prediction, including Random Forest (RF), k-Nearest Neighbors (k-NN), Support Vector Machine (SVM), Decision Tree (DT), Naive Bayes (NB), Quadratic Discriminant Analysis (QDA), and ensemble learning. Among the various models generated, the RF classifier-based model top-performed in both the internal [Accuracy: 91.40%, Precision: 89.37%, Sensitivity: 90.05%, and Specificity: 92.36%] and external validations [Accuracy: 89.43%, Precision: 88.92%, Sensitivity: 85.21%, and Specificity: 92.43%]. In addition, the RF classifier-based model correctly predicted the known AMPs and non-AMPs; those kept aside as an additional external validation set. The performance assessment revealed three features viz. ChargeD2001, PAAC12 (pseudo amino acid composition), and polarity T13 that are likely to play vital roles in the antimicrobial activity of AMPs. The developed RF-based classification model may further be useful in the design and prediction of the novel potential AMPs.

Antibacterial Compounds from Mushrooms: A Lead to Fight ESKAPEE Pathogenic Bacteria?

Infectious diseases are among the greatest threats to global health in the 21st century, and one critical concern is due to antibiotic resistance developed by an increasing number of bacterial strains. New resistance mechanisms are emerging with many infections becoming more and more difficult if not impossible to treat. This growing phenomenon not only is associated with increased mortality but also with longer hospital stays and higher medical costs. For these reasons, there is an urgent need to find new antibiotics targeting pathogenic microorganisms such as ESKAPEE bacteria. Most of currently approved antibiotics are derived from microorganisms, but higher fungi could constitute an alternative and remarkable reservoir of anti-infectious compounds. For instance, pleuromutilins constitute the first class of antibiotics derived from mushrooms. However, macromycetes still represent a largely unexplored source. Publications reporting the antibacterial potential of mushroom extracts are emerging, but few purified compounds have been evaluated for their bioactivity on pathogenic bacterial strains. Therefore, the aim of this review is to compile up-to-date data about natural products isolated from fruiting body fungi, which significantly inhibit the growth of ESKAPEE pathogenic bacteria. When available, data regarding modes of action and cytotoxicity, mandatory when considering a possible drug development, have been discussed in order to highlight the most promising compounds.

Structural and related studies on Mevo lectin from Methanococcus voltae A3: the first thorough characterization of an archeal lectin and its interactions

Crystallographic and solution studies of Mevo lectin and its complexes, the first effort of its kind on an archeal lectin, reveal a structure similar to β-prism I fold lectins from plant and animal sources, but with a quaternary association involving a ring structure with seven-fold symmetry. Each subunit in the heptamer carries one sugar binding site on the first Greek key motif. The oligomeric interface is primarily made up of a parallel β-sheet involving a strand of Greek key I of one subunit and Greek key ΙΙΙ from a neighboring subunit. The crystal structures of the complexes of the lectin with mannose, αMan(1,2)αMan, αMan(1,3)αMan, a mannotriose and a mannopentose revealed a primary binding site similar to that found in other mannose specific β-prism I fold lectins. The complex with αMan(1,3)αMan provides an interesting case in which a few subunits have the reducing end at the primary binding site, while the majority have the nonreducing end at the primary binding site. The structures of complexes involving the trisaccharide and the pentasaccharide exhibit cross-linking among heptameric molecules. The observed arrangements may be relevant to the multivalency of the lectin. Phylogenetic analysis of amino acid sequences indicates that Mevo lectin is closer to β-prism I fold animal lectins than with those of plant origin. The results presented here reinforce the conclusion regarding the existence of lectins in all three domains of life. It would also appear that lectins evolved to the present form before the three domains diverged.

Anticancer potentiality and mode of action of low-carbohydrate proteins and peptides from mushrooms

Severe side effects of chemotherapy as well as drug resistance highlight the ongoing need to discover novel natural bioactive compounds with anticancer potentiality. Mushroom-derived proteins are among the naturally occurring compounds that have been the subject of a body of research on their potentiality in cancer therapy. The greatest attention in relevant review articles has been paid to well-known mushroom-derived glycoproteins such as lectins and protein-bound polysaccharide complexes such as polysaccharide-K (PSK) or krestin and polysaccharopeptide (PSP), which contain substantial amounts of carbohydrates (50-90%). These complex compounds exert their anticancer activity mainly by binding to cell membranes leading to extrinsic (death receptor) apoptosis or intrinsic (mitochondrial) apoptotic pathways. However, several other research studies have reported pure, well-characterized, proteins or peptides from mushrooms, which are carbohydrate-free or have very low amounts of carbohydrate. These proteins may fall into four categories including fungal immunomodulatory proteins, ubiquitin-like proteins, enzymes, and unclassified proteins. Well-defined chemical structure, elucidated full amino acid or N-terminal sequences, purity, and having some distinct and specific pathways compared to glycoproteins have made these low-carbohydrate proteins attractive for cancer research. The aim of this review was therefore to improve the current understanding of mushroom-derived low-carbohydrate proteins and to consolidate the existing knowledge of the most promising mushroom species from which low-carbohydrate proteins have been derived, characterized, and examined for their anticancer activity. In addition, molecular targets and mechanisms of action of these proteins have been discussed. Key points • Mushroom-derived low-carbohydrate proteins lack or have low carbohydrate. • Low-carbohydrate proteins show potent anticancer activities in vitro and in vivo. • There are specific pathways for low-carbohydrate proteins to inhibit cancer cells.

Phytochemicals as Potential Anticancer Drugs: Time to Ponder Nature's Bounty

Medicinal plants have been used from the beginning of human civilization, which is mostly evident from the ancient script and traditional herbal medicine recipe. Despite the historically enriched demonstration about the use of plant as therapeutics, the pharmaceutical industries lack interest on phytochemical research compared with synthetic drug. Mostly, the absence of information about plant-based medicinal therapeutics is responsible to draw the attention of researchers to think about natural products as potential drug for detrimental diseases, such as cancer. This review will cover about clinically successful plant-based anticancer drugs and underappreciated, but potential, drugs to bridge the information gap between plant biologists and clinical researchers. Additionally, unprecedented advancement of synthetic chemistry, omics study to pin point the target genes/proteins, and efficient drug delivery system have made it easier for researchers to develop a phytochemical as an efficient anticancer drug.

Plasmid DNA nicking- a Novel Activity of Soybean Trypsin Inhibitor and Bovine Aprotinin

Protease inhibitors, such as trypsin inhibitor, serum alpha-1 antitrypsin, or liver aprotinin, are a class of proteins that competitively bind and block the catalytic activity of proteolytic enzymes with wide ranging biological functions. A significant number of protease inhibitors have also been shown to possess antimicrobial activity, presumed to contribute in defense against pathogenic microorganisms as plants with higher levels of protease inhibitors tend to exhibit increased resistance towards pathogens. Two proposed mechanisms for the antimicrobial activity are combating microbial proteases that play roles in disease development and disruption of microbial cell wall & membrane necessary for survival. Here we show for the first time a novel activity of soybean trypsin inhibitor and bovine aprotinin that they nick supercoiled, circular plasmid DNA. A number of experiments conducted to demonstrate the observed DNA nicking activity is inherent, rather than a co-purified, contaminating nuclease. The nicking of the plasmid results in markedly reduced efficiencies in transformation of E. coli and transfection of HEK293T cells. Thus, this work reveals yet a new mechanism for the antimicrobial activity by protease inhibitors.

Antimicrobials from Mushrooms for Assuring Food Safety

The interest in discovering and developing natural antimicrobials has significantly increased due to consumer preferences for foods that are free of chemical preservatives while still microbiologically safe. One of the best sources of natural antimicrobials is certain mushrooms (fungi) as many of them not only have nutraceutical functions but also possess antimicrobial properties. This article reviews the available information on mushroom antimicrobials for food safety control. It includes available resources, extraction procedures, antimicrobial activities, and the status of their applications to food safety. The review indicates that there are great potential benefits to be gained from mushroom antimicrobials in food production, processing, and preservation as a biosolution to meet the increasing demands for food quality and safety.

Purification and characterization of an extracellular ribonuclease from a Bacillus sp. RNS3 (KX966412)

Ribonucleases (RNases) catalyze the degradation of ribonucleic acid (RNA) into smaller nucleotides. RNases display angiogenic, neurotoxic, antitumor and immunosuppressive properties. In the present study, an extracellular RNase was successfully purified to homogeneity from a Bacillus sp. RNS3 (KX966412) by salting out at 0-50% ammonium sulphate saturation followed by the gel permeation (Sephadex G-100) chromatography. The multistep purification resulted in 10.4 fold purification of RNase with a yield of 3.12%. The activity of the purified RNase was found to be 2.02U/mg protein. The purified RNase was monomeric with a molecular weight of 66kDa. It exhibited Michalis-Menten kinetics parameters K_cat 7.92min^-1 and K_m 0.12mg/mL. The antiproliferative activity of the purified RNase was tested against an established Hep-2C (HeLa derived) cancer cell line in vitro. The purified RNase reduced the viability of the Hep-2C cells significantly with an IC₅₀ value of 3.53μg/mL. The haemolytic activity of purified RNase was also evaluated and unfortunately, it showed a strong haemolytic activity towards human RBCs.

Fungal proteinaceous compounds with multiple biological activities

Fungi comprise organisms like molds, yeasts and mushrooms. They have been used as food or medicine for a long time. A large number of fungal proteins or peptides with diverse biological activities are considered as antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral and anticancer agents. They encompass proteases, ribosome inactivating proteins, defensins, hemolysins, lectins, laccases, ribonucleases, immunomodulatory proteins, and polysaccharopeptides. The target of the present review is to update the status of the various bioactivities of these fungal proteins and peptides and discuss their therapeutic potential.

Bioactive formulations prepared from fruiting bodies and submerged culture mycelia of the Brazilian edible mushroom Pleurotus ostreatoroseus Singer

Pleurotus ostreatoroseus is a Brazilian edible mushroom whose chemical characterization and bioactivity still remain underexplored. In this study, the hydrophilic and lipophilic compounds as well as the antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activities of formulations (ethanol extracts) prepared with its fruiting bodies and submerged culture mycelia were compared. The bioactive formulations contain at least five free sugars, four organic acids, four phenolic compounds and two tocopherols. The fruiting body-based formulation revealed higher reducing power, DPPH scavenging activity, β-carotene bleaching inhibition and lipid peroxidation inhibition in brain homogenates than the mycelium-based preparation, as well as higher anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial activities. The absence of hepatotoxicity was confirmed in porcine liver primary cells. These functional responses can be related to the levels of bioactive components including phenolic acids, organic acids and tocopherols.

Edible mushrooms: improving human health and promoting quality life

Mushrooms have been consumed since earliest history; ancient Greeks believed that mushrooms provided strength for warriors in battle, and the Romans perceived them as the “Food of the Gods.” For centuries, the Chinese culture has treasured mushrooms as a health food, an “elixir of life.” They have been part of the human culture for thousands of years and have considerable interest in the most important civilizations in history because of their sensory characteristics; they have been recognized for their attractive culinary attributes. Nowadays, mushrooms are popular valuable foods because they are low in calories, carbohydrates, fat, and sodium: also, they are cholesterol-free. Besides, mushrooms provide important nutrients, including selenium, potassium, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin D, proteins, and fiber. All together with a long history as food source, mushrooms are important for their healing capacities and properties in traditional medicine. It has reported beneficial effects for health and treatment of some diseases. Many nutraceutical properties are described in mushrooms, such as prevention or treatment of Parkinson, Alzheimer, hypertension, and high risk of stroke. They are also utilized to reduce the likelihood of cancer invasion and metastasis due to antitumoral attributes. Mushrooms act as antibacterial, immune system enhancer and cholesterol lowering agents; additionally, they are important sources of bioactive compounds. As a result of these properties, some mushroom extracts are used to promote human health and are found as dietary supplements.

Pleurotus biomass production on vinasse and its potential use for aquaculture feed

The vinasse is a by-product generated during the manufacture of alcohol from sugarcane fermentation. Rich in organic matter, it is known that the vinasse has the potential to be used as a source of nutrients for plants as well as microorganisms. In this study, the fungi Pleurotus sajor-caju, P. ostreatus, P. albidus and P. flabellatus were cultivated in vinasse and utilised as a complementary diet for Danio rerio fish. The fungi mycelia cultured in vinasse for 15 days were lyophilised and offered to the fishes at a rate of 2% (medium/body weight) for 28 days. P. albidus produced the highest biomass (16.27 g L^-1). Bromatological analysis of mycelia showed similar values to commercial rations. Toxicity tests showed that fish survival was 100% and no significant biomass loss was observed, indicating that the tested fungi grown in vinasse showed no toxicity. Our results showed that vinasse is a promising by-product for fungal growth and the mycelia of Pleurotus sp. fungi can be included in the diets of fish as a nutritional supplement.

Purification and characterization of a ribonuclease with antiproliferative activity from the mystical wild mushroom Tuber indicum

An RNase with a molecular mass of 28 kDa and with high ribonucleolytic activity toward poly(A) was purified from the ascocarps of Tuber indicum. The purification procedure involved ion exchange chromatography on diethylaminoethyl cellulose, Q-Sepharose and Mono Q, and gel filtration by fast protein liquid chromatography on Superdex 75. The pH and temperature optima of the RNase were 7.2 and 50 °C, respectively. The ranking of its activity toward various polyhomoribonucleotides was poly(A)>poly(C)>poly(G) ≈ poly(U). All of the metal ions used in this study, except for the K(+) ions, curtailed the activity of the RNase. The RNase activity was reduced by ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA), dithiothreitol (DTT), and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) by 42.2%, 75.5%, and 96.6%, respectively. The RNase inhibited the proliferation of hepatoma (HepG2) and human breast cancer cell lines (MCF7), with half-maximal inhibitory concentrations (IC50 ) of 12.6 and 16.6 μM, respectively.

Aqueous extracts of Lentinula edodes and Pleurotus sajor-caju exhibit high antioxidant capability and promising in vitro antitumor activity

Mushroom extracts are increasingly sold as dietary supplements because of several of their properties, including the enhancement of immune function and antitumor activity. We hypothesized that soluble polar substances present in mushroom extracts may show antioxidant and anticancer properties. This report shows that Brazilian aqueous extracts of Lentinula edodes and Pleurotus sajor-caju exert inhibitory activity against the proliferation of the human tumor cell lines laryngeal carcinoma (Hep-2) and cervical adenocarcinoma (HeLa). Cell viability was determined after using 3 different temperatures (4°C, 22°C, and 50°C) for mushroom extraction. Biochemical assays carried out in parallel indicated higher amounts of polyphenols in the L edodes extracts at all extraction temperatures investigated. The scavenging ability of the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical showed higher activity for L edodes extracts. Superoxide dismutase-like activity showed no statistically significant difference among the groups for the 2 tested extracts, and catalase-like activity was increased with the L edodes extracts at 4°C. The results for the cytotoxic activity from P sajor-caju extracts at 22°C revealed the half maximal inhibitory concentration values of 0.64% ± 0.02% for Hep-2 and 0.25% ± 0.02% for HeLa. A higher cytotoxic activity was found for the L edodes extract at 22°C, with half maximal inhibitory concentration values of 0.78% ± 0.02% for Hep-2 and 0.57% ± 0.01% for HeLa. Substantial morphological modifications in cells were confirmed by Giemsa staining after treatment with either extract, suggesting inhibition of proliferation and induction of apoptosis with increasing extract concentrations. These results indicate that the aqueous extracts of Brazilian L edodes and P sajor-caju mushrooms are potential sources of antioxidant and anticancer compounds. However, further investigations are needed to exploit their valuable therapeutic uses and to elucidate their modes of action.

First biochemical characterization of a novel ribonuclease from wild mushroom Amanita hemibapha

A 45-kDa ribonuclease (RNase) was purified from dried fruiting bodies of the wild mushroom Amanita hemibapha. It was adsorbed on DEAE-cellulose, S-sepharose, and finally purified on Superdex 75. The RNase exhibited maximal RNase activity at pH 5 and in a temperature range between 60-70°C. It demonstrated no ribonucleolytic activity toward four polyhomoribonucleotides. The amino acid sequence analysis (GDDETFWEHEWAK) showed this RNase was a ribonuclease T2-like RNase. It exhibited strong inhibitory activity against HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (HIV-1 RT) with an IC₅₀ of 17 μM.

A novel ribonuclease with potent HIV-1 reverse transcriptase inhibitory activity from cultured mushroom Schizophyllum commune

A 20-kDa ribonuclease (RNase) was purified from fresh fruiting bodies of cultured Schizophyllum commune mushrooms. The RNase was not adsorbed on Affi-gel blue gel but adsorbed on DEAE-cellulose and CM-cellulose. It exhibited maximal RNase activity at pH 6.0 and 70°C. It demonstrated the highest ribonucleolytic activity toward poly (U) (379.5 μ/mg), the second highest activity toward poly (C) (244.7 μ/mg), less activity toward poly (A) (167.4 μ/mg), and much weaker activity toward poly (G) (114.5 μ/mg). The RNase inhibited HIV-1 reverse transcriptase with an IC(50) of 65 μM. No effect on [(3)H-methyl]-thymidine uptake by lymphoma MBL2 cells and leukemia L1210 cells was observed at 100 μM concentration of the RNase. A comparison of RNases from S. commune and Volvariella volvacea revealed that they demonstrated some similarities in N-terminal amino acid sequence, optimum pH and polyhomoribonucleotide specificity. However, some differences in chromatographic behavior and molecular mass were observed.

Ribonucleases of different origins with a wide spectrum of medicinal applications

Ribonucleases (RNases) are a type of nucleases that catalyze the degradation of RNA into smaller components. They exist in a wide range of life forms from prokaryotes to eukaryotes. RNase-controlled RNA degradation is a determining factor in the control of gene expression, maturation and turnover, which are further associated with the progression of cancers and infectious diseases. Over the years, RNases purified from multiple origins have drawn increasing attention from medical scientists due to their remarkable antitumor properties. In this review, we present a brief summary of the representative RNases of fungal, bacterial, plant, and animal origins and outline their potential medicinal value in the treatment of tumor and AIDS. Among them, the most clinically promising RNases are mushroom RNases, Binase and Barnase from bacteria, ginseng RNases, and Onconase from frog (Rana pipiens). Fast developing protein engineering of RNases, which display more potent cytotoxic activity on and greater selectivity for malignant cells, has also aroused the interest of researchers. The multiple anti-cancer mechanisms of RNases are also included. To sum up, these inspiring studies unveil a new perspective for RNases as potential therapeutic agents.

A novel ribonuclease from fresh fruiting bodies of the portabella mushroom Agaricus bisporus

A 14 kDa ribonuclease with a novel N-terminal sequence was isolated from fresh fruiting bodies of the portabella mushroom. It was adsorbed on DEAE-cellulose and carboxymethyl-cellulose, and demonstrated the highest ribonucleolytic potency toward poly (A), 60% as much activity toward poly (C), 40% as much activity toward poly (U), and the least activity (7% as much) toward poly (G). It exhibited a pH optimum at pH 4.5 and a temperature optimum at 60 °C. Its activity at 100 °C was higher than that at 20 °C.Key words: ribonuclease, portabella mushroom, isolation.

Isolation and characterization of a glucose/mannose/rhamnose-specific lectin from the knife bean Canavalia gladiata

A lectin with specificity toward mannose, glucose, and rhamnose has been isolated from the legumes of the knife bean Canavalia gladiata. The lectin is composed of two identical 30-kDa subunits with substantial N-terminal sequence similarity to Concanavalin A (Con A). It was purified by affinity chromatography on Affi-gel blue gel, ion exchange chromatography on Mono S, and gel filtration by fast protein liquid chromatography on Superdex 200. Compared with Con A, knife bean lectin started to stimulate [methyl-(3)H]thymidine uptake by mouse splenocytes at a lower concentration, and more potently inhibited proliferation of L1210 leukemia cells. In contrast to Con A, the mitogenic activity of knife bean lectin toward mouse splenocytes, but not its antiproliferative activity toward tumor cells, could be abrogated by 250 mM glucose. Both mitogenic and antiproliferative activities of Con A were abolished by glucose. The lectin inhibited HIV-1 reverse transcriptase with an IC(50) of 35 microM and cell-free translation in a rabbit reticulocyte lysate system with an IC(50) of 2.08 microM. The lectin did not exhibit antifungal activity.

Purification of a novel ribonuclease from dried fruiting bodies of the edible wild mushroom Thelephora ganbajun

A ribonuclease, with a molecular mass of 30 kDa and a potent inhibitory activity toward HIV-1 reverse transcriptase (IC50=300 nM), was isolated from dried fruiting bodies of the edible wild mushroom Thelephora ganbajun. The ribonuclease exhibited a unique polyhomoribonucleotide specificity, with the highest activity toward poly(U), about 50% and 25% as much activity toward poly(A) and poly(C), respectively, and minimal activity toward poly(G). Unlike other mushroom RNases, the ribonuclease was adsorbed on DEAE-cellulose and Q-Sepharose, and unadsorbed on CM-cellulose. A temperature of 40 degrees C and a pH of 6-7 were required for maximal activity of the enzyme. The enzyme was characterized by an N-terminal sequence without any homology to known proteins.

Peptides and proteins from fungi

The peptides and proteins secreted by fungi are reviewed in this article. They include ribosome inactivating peptides and proteins, antifungal peptides and proteins, lectins, ubiquitin-like peptides and proteins, peptides and proteins with nucleolytic activity, proteases, xylanases, cellulases, sugar oxidoreductases, laccases, invertases, trehalose phosphorylases, and various enzymes with applications in food industry, chemical production and the medical sector.

Isolation of a new ribonuclease from fruiting bodies of the silver plate mushroom Clitocybe maxima

A ribonuclease, with an N-terminal sequence exhibiting some homology to ribonuclease from Pleurotus ostreatus (Family Pleurotaceae), has been purified from fruiting bodies of the silver plate mushroom Clitocybe maxima (Family Tricholomataceae). However, there is little resemblance between the N-terminal sequences of ribonucleases from various Pleurotus species, and a lesser extent of resemblance between ribonucleases from C. maxima and Pleurotus tuber-regium. No structural relationship exists between ribonuclease from C. maxima, and those from Volvariella volvacea, Lentinus edodes and Irpex lacteus. The purification protocol involved ion exchange chromatography on DEAE-cellulose, affinity chromatography on Affi-gel blue gel, ion exchange chromatography on CM-Sepharose, and fast protein liquid chromatography on Superdex 75. The ribonuclease was unadsorbed on DEAE-cellulose and adsorbed on Affi-gel blue gel and CM-Sepharose. It exhibited a molecular mass of 17.5 kDa in both gel filtration and sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. It manifested roughly the same ribonucleolytic potency toward poly A and poly G followed by poly U. Its activity toward poly C was, by comparison, meager. The temperature and pH required for its optimal activity were, respectively, 70 degrees C and 6.5-7.0.