Sterols and other natural products from some Tanzania wild mushrooms: Cantharellus isabelinus C.Symoenshii, Polyporus Molluscensis and padaxis species

This thesis reports on chemical and antimicrobial investigations of four mushrooms species, namely Cantharellus isabelinus. C. symoensii, Plponus molluscensis and a hydroxybenzaldehyde were isolated of four mushroom species and their structures established based on spectroscopic methods. An amino compound whole structures was unfortunately not fully elucidated due to lack of some spectral information, was also isolated. When tested for antimicrobial sctivity, all except the crude ethanol extract from the podaxis species showed some activity. The latter extract only enhanced the growth the test fungi. The extracts also exhibited some cytotoxicity against brine shrip larvae at different concentrations. Again the crude extract from the Podaxis species was inactive. Ten mushroom species that occur wildly in Tanzania were analysis 16 known amino acids were recorded, including all essential amino acids except isoleucine. Whereas Ganoderma lucidum and anInoustus species contained the least number of amino acids (6), Bolenus prinatus contained the highest number of the amino acids (15). Bolefinus caripes and Lactarius sp. Off showed the highest number f essential amino acids than all the other mushroom species. When the percentage compositions of the essential amino acids from the two mushroom species were calculated, leucine was found to be the most abundant. Nutritional these results indicate the necessity of including combinations f different mushroom species in diet in order to drive a balance of essential amino acids frm the mushroom species.