Abstract
Lichens are traditionally used as medicine since the medieval period. More than 1000 secondary metabolites have been identified in lichens. It is still unknown why the lichens produce such a plethora of secondary metabolites. However, scientists have successfully utilized them for taxonomy and bioprospecting. The extracts of lichens have exhibited wide range of biological activities, such as antimicrobial (antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, anti-HIV), antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antipyretic, analgesic, anti-ulcer, and anticancer activities. The lichen metabolites are also being assayed and found useful as hepatoprotective, cardiovascular protective, gastrointestinal protective, antidiabetic, and probiotic, which are considered as the lifestyle diseases of modern days. Polyketides are one of the major groups of secondary metabolites produced by lichens involving polyketide synthase genes. Interestingly among the 1000 secondary metabolites known from lichens only a few are isolated and tested for their biological activities, while in all remaining cases, activity is indirectly attributed to the presence of various metabolites. In the present chapter, a total of 35 secondary metabolites that are isolated from lichens were tested for biological activities and are listed along with their structure, substance class, and occurrence. Further scope for bioprospecting studies is also discussed.
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We thank Director, CSIR-NBRI and KSCSTE-JNTBGRI for providing infrastructural facilities, Dr. Siljo Joseph and members of Lichenology laboratory for their cooperation during the study.
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Nayaka, S., Haridas, B. (2020). Bioactive Secondary Metabolites from Lichens. In: Sukumaran, S.T., Sugathan, S., Abdulhameed, S. (eds) Plant Metabolites: Methods, Applications and Prospects. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-5136-9_12
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