Asparaginase is an important enzyme used as an anti-cancer compound. Five Thai medicinal plants, Hiptage benghalensis, Betula alnoides, Adenanthera microsperma, Eupatorium odoratum and Houttuynia cordata were used for fungal isolation by triple surface sterilization method. One hundred and seventeen isolates of endophytic fungi were evaluated for asparaginase production using qualitative and quantitative analyses. Twenty-five isolates demonstrated pink zone around their colonies in the agar plate assays. Fungal isolates from H. benghalensis and E. odoratum were highly active when tested with the spectrophotometric method. The endophytic fungi with high activity are proposed as a possible asparaginase source to manage cancer cells.
Keywords: endophytic fungi, Thai medicinal plants, asparaginase
Corresponding author: E-mail: scboi009@chiangmai.ac.th
Theantana*, T. ., Hyde, K. ., & Lumyong, S. . (2007). ASPARAGINASE PRODUCTION BY ENDOPHYTIC FUNGI ISOLATED FROM SOME THAI MEDICINAL PLANTS. CURRENT APPLIED SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, 13-18.
