Exploring the Antagonistic Potential of Fungal Endophytes isolated from Andrographis paniculata (Burm. f.) wall. Ex Nees and Qualitative Profiling of Secondary Metabolites from the plant extract

Abstract

Andrographis paniculata is a noteworthy Ayurvedic herb that has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and conventionally been used to deal various liver-related diseases. Thus, this study concentrates on isolation and identification of endophytic fungi from different parts of this plant, assess their antimicrobial activity, and examine the presence of phytochemicals, in order to evaluate the plant’s potential as a source of bioactive compounds for pharmaceutical or agricultural applications. Research methods: For the isolation of endophytic fungi, the plant sample has been fragmented from various parts of the plant, such as- from leaf, stem and roots and each fragment then surface sterilized with the procedure given by Bayman [4]. Treated fragments were inoculated on Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA) and Czapek Dox Agar (CDA) plates and incubated at 25 ± 2℃ for 7-10 days. Antagonistic activity of the fungal isolates against selected pathogens were measured using dual culture method given by Talapatra [39]. The plant extract was used for the initial phytochemical screening using standard protocols from earlier studies [12; 3; 36; 37]. Findings and values: The three dominant fungal endophytes from A. paniculata were isolated: Aspergillus sp. (LP1- from leaf fragment), Colletotrichum sp. (SP1-from stem fragment), Penicillium sp. (SR1- from root fragment). In dual culture assessment it has been found that Aspergillus and Penicillium spp. hinder the growth of Escherichia coli, whereas Colletotrichum sp. completely overgrew the bacterial pathogen Escherichia coli. The phytochemical screening confirms the existence of phenols, alkaloids and flavonoids in the stem sample whereas alkaloids and flavonoids are present in the leaf sample. Tannin and saponin were absent is both the parts. Thus, these findings support the plant’s potential as a bioresource for antimicrobial and bioactive compounds