Antiproliferative, Antibacterial and Antifungal Activity of the Lichen Xanthoria parietina and Its Secondary Metabolite Parietin

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Adriana Basile³  Daniela Rigano⁴  Stefano Loppi¹  Annalisa Di Santi²  Angela Nebbioso²  Sergio Sorbo⁵  Barbara Conte³  Luca Paoli¹  Francesca De Ruberto³  Anna Maria Molinari²  Lucia Altucci²  Paola Bontempo² 

[1] Department of Life Sciences, University of Siena, Siena 53100, Italy; E-Mails:;Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics and General Pathology, Second University of Naples, Naples 80138, Italy; E-Mails:;Department of Biological Sciences—Plant Biology Section, University of Naples “Federico II”, Naples 80126, Italy; E-Mails:;Department of Pharmacy, University of Naples “Federico II”, Naples 80131, Italy; E-Mail:;Interdepartmental Service Centre for Electron Microscopy C.I.S.M.E., University of Naples “Federico II”, via Foria 223, Naples 80139, Italy; E-Mail:

关键词: Xanthoria parietina;    lichens;    parietin;    antimicrobial activity;    anticancer activity;    signal transduction;    proliferation;    differentiation;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijms16047861

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Lichens are valuable natural resources used for centuries throughout the world as medicine, food, fodder, perfume, spices and dyes, as well as for other miscellaneous purposes. This study investigates the antiproliferative, antibacterial and antifungal activity of the acetone extract of the lichen Xanthoria parietina (Linnaeus) Theodor Fries and its major secondary metabolite, parietin. The extract and parietin were tested for antimicrobial activity against nine American Type Culture Collection standard and clinically isolated bacterial strains, and three fungal strains. Both showed strong antibacterial activity against all bacterial strains and matched clinical isolates, particularly against Staphylococcus aureus from standard and clinical sources. Among the fungi tested, Rhizoctonia solani was the most sensitive. The antiproliferative effects of the extract and parietin were also investigated in human breast cancer cells. The extract inhibited proliferation and induced apoptosis, both effects being accompanied by modulation of expression of cell cycle regulating genes such as p16, p27, cyclin D1 and cyclin A. It also mediated apoptosis by activating extrinsic and intrinsic cell death pathways, modulating Tumor Necrosis Factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) and B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2), and inducing Bcl-2-associated agonist of cell death (BAD) phosphorylation. Our results indicate that Xanthoria parietina is a major potential source of antimicrobial and anticancer substances.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2015 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.