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    Evidence of Small Fungal Cysteine-Rich Proteins Acting as Biosurfactants and Self-Assembling into Large Fibers

    Year: 2023

    Journal: International Journal of Molecular Sciences, Volume 24, 2023-01, page 13843

    Authors: Pitocchi, Rossana; Stanzione, Ilaria; Illiano, Anna; Amoresano, Angela; Tarallo, Oreste; Cicatiello, Paola; Piscitelli, Alessandra; Giardina, Paola

    Keywords: surface tension; bioemulsifiers; functional amyloids; marine fungi

    Fungi produce surface-active proteins, among which hydrophobins are the most characterized and attractive also for their ability to form functional amyloids. Our most recent findings show that these abilities are shared with other classes of fungal proteins. Indeed, in this paper, we compared the characteristics of a class I hydrophobin (Vmh2 from Pleurotus ostreatus) and an unknown protein (named PAC3), extracted from the marine fungal strain Acremonium sclerotigenum, which does not belong to the same protein family based on its sequence features. They both proved to be good biosurfactants, stabilizing emulsions in several conditions (concentration, pH, and salinity) and decreasing surface tension to a comparable value to that of some synthetic surfactants. After that, we observed for both Vmh2 and PAC3 the formation of giant fibers without the need for harsh conditions or long incubation time, a remarkable ability herein reported for the first time.
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