Endophytic Neopestalotiopsis formicarum from a Korean native host biodegrades bisphenol A into non-cytotoxic by-products

초록

Continuous efforts are being made to remove or reduce the endocrine disruptor bisphenol A (BPA) from the environment, with mycoremediation recognized as a promising approach. This study aimed to isolate and identify endophytic and endolichenic fungi from Korean native plants and lichens capable of degrading BPA under liquid fermentation conditions. Among 15 fungal isolates, most exhibited higher biomass yield and total protein content in BPA-containing medium (CZB) compared to the control (CZY). High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) analysis revealed that Neopestalotiopsis formicarum KNUEP11 completely degraded 50 mg/L of BPA within 336 h. The fermentation filtrate (CZB) of KNUEP11 showed notable free radical scavenging activities (DPPH: 15 %, ABTS: 27 %) and minimal cytotoxicity (<20 %) toward NIH3T3 cells. Furthermore, treatment of KNUEP11 fermented CZB indicated a trivial reactive oxygen species (ROS) level compared to CZB (alone) treated NIH3T3 cells. These findings suggest that N. formicarum KNUEP11 can efficiently degrade BPA without generating cytotoxic by-products, highlighting its potential for eco-friendly mycoremediation. However, further studies are needed to identify the metabolic pathways and degradation products involved.

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