Study on isolation of fungi from marine organisms in the waters of Vietnam and Russia as a source of secondary metabolites with biological activities or new structures.
Immediate objective: Study on isolation of fungi from seaweeds and sponges of Nha Trang Bay, Khanh Hoa province as a source of secondary metabolites with biological activities or new structures.

Study on biologically active compounds is an attractive research direction of many scientists from Vietnam and over the world. Along with the strong development of the chemical industry of natural compounds, Nha Trang Institute of Technology Research and Application has cooperated with Pacific Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Far-Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Russia) implementing the international cooperation mission "Marine fungi in Russian and Vietnamese territorial waters: a promising source of structurally new and bioactive secondary metabolites". Therefore, the obtained results are very significant in terms of practicality and applicability.

This is the first study in our country about secondary metabolites with biological activity of fungal isolates from Khanh Hoa and Ninh Thuan sea areas. Six-ty marine fungal strains were isolated and three isolates with high antibiotic activity were selected including A. flocculosus 01NT.1.1.5, Penicillium sp. KMM 4762, P. chrysogenum 045-357-2. We isolated 09 compounds, including a new compound from strain A. flocculosus 01NT.1.1.5 and two known compounds from Penicillium sp. KMM 4762 but had not been described earlier in nature. The results showed that the compounds isolated from A. flocculosus 01NT.1.1.5 had antibiotic activity against most test pathogens including E. coli, P. aeruginosa, S. aureus, B. cereus, S. faecalis, L. monocytogenes, and C. albicans. In addition, the compounds from Penicillium sp. KMM 4762 were tested for the first time for cytotoxicity against murine splenocytes and erythrocytes. However, none of the tested compounds was active at concentrations up to 100 µM. These are the initial results in the orientation of researching new sources for biomedical sciences from Vietnam marine organisms and tightening the cooperation between Vietnamese scientists and Russian scientists aims to develop and improve the scientific level of researchers at Nha Trang Institute of Technology Research and Application.

Sixty marine fungal strains isolated in Khanh Hoa and Ninh Thuan province were investigated for antibiotic activity. Besides, nine compounds were obtained from three selected marine fungi. Among them, there is one new compound from A. flocculosus 01NT.1.1.5 and two known compounds were first isolated from nature from Penicillium sp. KMM 4672.

- Publications:
1.    Smetanina OF, Yurchenko AN, Ivanets EV, Gerasimenko AV, Trinh PTH, Ly BL, Nhut ND, Van TTT, Yurchenko EA, Afiyatullov SS (2017) Aromatic  metabolites  of  marine  fungus Penicillium  sp.  KMM  4672  associated  with a  brown  alga  Padina  sp. Chemistry of Natural Compounds. 53 (3): 600-602. DOI 10.1007/s10600-017-2064-6.
2.    Phan Thi Hoai Trinh, Ngo Thi Duy Ngoc, Phi Quyet Tien, Bui Minh Ly, Tran Thi Thanh Van (2016) Effect of cultural conditions on antimicrobial activity of marine – derived fungus Penicillium chrysogenum. Journal of Biotechnology, 14(4): 727-733.
3.    Ngo Thi Duy Ngoc, Phan Thi Hoai Trinh, Cao Thi Thuy Hang, Nguyen Thi Thuan, Vo Thi Dieu Trang, Huynh Hoang Nhu Khanh, Nguyen Duy Nhut, Tran Thi Thanh Van (2016) Potetial marine fungi for antimicrobial activity. Journal of Science and Technology 54(2B): 125-130.

- Conclusion:
Scientists from Pacific Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry- Far Eastern Branch- Russian Academy of Sciences (PIBOC-FEB-RAS) are the world's leading scientists in the field of bioactive compounds. The marine sources  are used for the purpose of functional foods and new drugs in the treatment of diseases. Therefore, research cooperation with Russian scientists is extremely favorable to develop this new research direction in our country. The cooporative relationship between the two sides should be developed and increasingly tightened. The results of the mission, in addition to the new scientific and technological data, also contribute to enhancing the potential of modern scientific staffs to deepen research into new issues in marine science and technology.
- Suggestion:
It is necessary to further expand the direction of researching bio-active substances from Vietnamese marine organisms in order to exploit and rationally use natural resources while affirming the biodiversity potential of the sea in our country.