Phylogenetic survey and antimicrobial activity of cultivable fungi associated with five scleractinian coral species in the South China Sea

Abstract

Relative to that of sponges, the diversity of fungi associated with corals, and their ecological roles, remain largely unknown. In this study, we surveyed culturable diversity and screened antimicrobial activity of spent culture liquid of fungi associated with five scleractinian corals collected in the South China Sea. In total, 123 fungal isolates were obtained, which were identified to 31 taxa in 23 genera from two phyla (Ascomycota and Basidiomycota) by comparing their ITS rDNA sequences with the reference sequences in GenBank. Specifically, eight genera of the Ascomycota (Periconia, Arthrinium, Engyodontium, Lasiodiplodia, Hortaea, Devriesia, Cyphellophora and Cadophora) and six genera of the Basidiomycota (Rhodosporidium, Panus, Trametes, Schizophyllum, Trichosporon and Cystobasidium) are new records for corals. The fungal communities in the five scleractinian coral species, together with those from previous studies, indicate that a high level of fungal diversity is associated with scleractinian corals. The antimicrobial activities of spent culture liquid of 31 selected fungal species were tested against five marine pathogenic bacteria. This study contributes to our knowledge of scleractinian coral-associated fungi and their potential as sources of pharmaceutical drug leads for pathogenic bacteria.