Obtainment of antifungal agents from extracts produced by mangrove fungi: isolation and identification of the active compounds

Abstract

Fungal infections are frequent and responsible for high morbidity and mortality especially in immune-sensitive patients. Treatment with the currently available antifungal substances is long and causes various collateral effects, which justifies the search for new antifungal agents. The Brazilian biodiversity represents a straight and viable source of new molecules to be applied by the chemistry and pharmaceutical industries. Taking in account these aspects, isolated fungi from mangroves were grown in laboratory and their organic extracts were assayed with respect to their antifungal activity. Fifteen microorganisms were selected as potential producers of antifungal agents. The organic extracts will be purified through chromatographic techniques and physical-chemical analysis will be applied to characterize the molecules. Antifungal assays will be performed to guide purification process. This project intends to purify the more effective extracts, in an effort to identify and isolate the antifungal molecule. (AU)