Physicochemical properties, molecular structure, antioxidant activity, and biological function of extracellular melanin from Ascosphaera apis

• Published in: Journal of Zhejiang University. B. Science 2022-05, Vol.23 (5), p.365-381
• Main Authors: Li, Zhi, Heng, Hui, Qin, Qiqian, Chen, Lanchun, Wang, Yuedi, Zhou, Zeyang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Antioxidants; Antioxidants - pharmacology; Ascosphaera apis; Bees; Biological activity; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Chalkbrood disease; Chelation; Chemical composition; Electron microscopy; Fourier analysis; Fourier transforms; Immunofluorescence; Infections; Infrared analysis; Infrared spectroscopy; Iron; Larva; Larvae; Localization; Mass spectrometry; Mass spectroscopy; Melanin; Melanins; Metal ions; Microscopy; Molecular Structure; Molecular weight; NMR; Nuclear magnetic resonance; Onygenales; Pathogenicity; Pathogens; Phenolic compounds; Phenols; Physicochemical properties; Raman spectroscopy; Research Article; Scanning electron microscopy; Scavenging; Spectroscopy; Spores; Structural analysis; Transmission electron microscopy; Virulence
• ISSN: 1673-1581; 1862-1783
• DOI: 10.1631/jzus.B2100718

Ascosphaera apis spores containing a dark-colored pigment infect honeybee larvae, resulting in a large-scale collapse of the bee colony due to chalkbrood disease. However, little is known about the pigment or whether it plays a role in bee infection caused by A. apis . In this study, the pigment was isolated by alkali extraction, acid hydrolysis, and repeated precipitation. Ultraviolet (UV) analysis revealed that the pigment had a color value of 273, a maximum absorption peak at 195 nm, and a high alkaline solubility (7.67%) and acid precipitability. Further chemical structure analysis of the pigment, including elemental composition, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), proved that it was a eumelanin with a typical indole structure. The molecular formula of melanin is C 10 H 6 O 4 N 2 , and its molecular weight is 409 Da. Melanin has hydroxyl, carboxyl, amino, and phenolic groups that can potentially chelate to metal ions. Antioxidant function analyses showed that A. apis melanin had a high scavenging activity against superoxide, hydroxyl, and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhyclrazyl (DPPH) radicals, and a high reducing ability to Fe 3+ . Indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses showed that A. apis melanin was located on the spore wall. The spore wall localization, antioxidant activity, and metal ion chelating properties of fungal melanin have been suggested to contribute to spore pathogenicity. However, further infection experiments showed that melanin-deficient spores did not reduce the mortality of bee larvae, indicating that melanin does not increase the virulence of A. apis spores. This study is the first report on melanin produced by A. apis , providing an important background reference for further study on its role in A. apis .