Author/Authors :
Jasim, A. S Department of Microbiology and Parasitology - College of Veterinary Medicine - University of Basra - Basrah, Iraq , Abass, B. A Department of Microbiology and Parasitology - College of Veterinary Medicine - University of Basra - Basrah, Iraq , Al-Rubayae, I. M Department of Biology - College of Science - University of Basra - Basrah, Iraq
Abstract :
Coprophilous fungi are a large group of fungi mostly found in herbivore dung and have an exclusive life cycle.
This group of fungi produces many important metabolites which can be consumed in medicine or agriculture.
The present study aimed to investigate the antibacterial effects of these fungi on bacterial mastitis. A total of 50
dung samples were collected from four herbivores (cows, buffalos, sheep, and camels) from different areas of
Basra. The moist chamber method was used for each sample to establish a fungal fruiting body and detect the
type of the fungi. The coprophilous fungi included Aspergillus sp. (A. niger, A. fumigatus, A. flavus, A. terrus),
Chaetomium sp., Sordaria sp., and Podospora sp. which belong to the Ascomycetes class. PCR test was
performed using the ITS region for confirmatory detection of species. The highest and the lowest number of
isolated species was associated with cow dung and camel dung, respectively. The antimicrobial property of
three different partitioned extracts (petroleum ether [F1], ethanol [F2], and water [F3]) prepared from some
fungal mycelia was evaluated in vitro. All fractions were tested to detect antimicrobial activity using the disc
diffusion assay against five pathogenic bacteria Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus Enterobacter, Proteus
mirabilis, and E. coli. which is isolated from bovine mastitis. Data revealed that all fractions could inhibit the
tested bacteria. However, inhibitory activity was found to be dependent on (6i) the used fungal strains; (ii) the
extracted solvent; and (iii) the tested bacteria. In general, the petroleum ether extracts (F1) derived from all
fungi displayed the highest inhibitory activity against the testing bacteria. In conclusion, the present study
concluded that the extracts prepared from the fungal mycelia contain bioactive compounds with antibacterial
properties. This study was first conducted in Iraq and further studies are required to develop new treatments.
Keywords :
Iraq , Herbivore dung , Coprophilous fungi , Antibiotic activity test
