Molecular characterization and antibacterial properties of endophytic fungi Lasidiplodia theobromae in Lobelia nicotianifolia Roth ex Schult. of central Western Ghats of Karnataka, India

Endophytic fungi are the great symbiotic microorganisms present in the plants. The fungal endophytes are recognized as valuable sources for novel secondary metabolites with various activities such as antimicrobial, antioxidant, antiviral, and anticancer. The present investigation focused on isolation, molecular identification, and phylogenetic studies of the endophytic fungi Lasidiplodia theobromae in the leaves of Lobelia nicotianifolia of Chikkamagaluru. The endophytic fungi L. theobromae was isolated, molecularly characterized by ITS (ITS1 and ITS4), and LSU (LROR and LR5) gene sequencing, and the antibacterial activity of the ethyl acetate fungal extract by agar well diffusion method was evaluated. Lasidiplodia theobromae expressed high antibacterial activity against all the tested clinical pathogenic bacteria and greater inhibition in Escherichia coli (MTCC-1599) compared to Xanthomonas campestris (MTCC-228), Klebsiella pneumoniae (MTCC-7028), and Staphylococcus aureus (MTCC-4734).