Antioxidant and UV photoprotective activity of lichenized fungi from Paramo de Sumapaz (Colombia)

Antioxidant and UV photoprotective activity of lichenized fungi from Paramo de Sumapaz (Colombia) | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Antioxidant and UV photoprotective activity of lichenized fungi from Paramo de Sumapaz (Colombia) David Gilberto Torres Vargas, Lissy Marcella Nuñez Arango, Jaime Aguirre Ceballos This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7005757/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Lichenized fungi are particularly abundant in harsh environments. Paramos are unique neotropical mountain environments located in the northern Andes which face several treats due to human activities. The preset study evaluated the antioxidant and photoprotective activities of four paramo lichen extracts. Antioxidant activity was assessed using DPPH and FRAP assays. While photoprotective parameters (Sun protection factor - SPF, critical wavelength and spectral amplitude) were determined spectrophotometrically. Rock-inhabiting lichens such as Thamnolia performed better than phorophyte or soil-growing lichens, such as Lobariella , Everniastrum and Peltigera . All extracts showed DPPH inhibition higher than 70% at 200 µg mL − 1 and exhibited significant differences with BHT (92% at 20 µg mL − 1 ). Furthermore, the extracts had moderate ferric ion reducing power and were statistically different from BHT. For protection against UV-B, the in vitro SPF were above 10 at 100 µg mL − 1 for all extracts except extract from Peltigera older thalli, with Lobariella proving to be the most active. Thamnolia and Lobariella can be identified as potential broad-spectrum filters (λ crit = 367.9 and 355.8 nm), while Everniastrum can be proposed as UV-B and UVA-2 filter and Peltigera presented the least photoprotective activity. Either younger or older Peltigera thalli were distinguished, obtaining differences in composition, antioxidant and photoprotective activity, which coincided with the optimal defense theory (ODT). Consequently, it is feasible to propose paramo lichen extracts, especially those growing on UV-exposed habitats, as sources of new photoprotective compounds. Indeed, they presented antioxidant capability as a remarkable improvement upon synthetic sunscreens. Lichenized fungi antioxidant activity photoprotective activity paramo ODT Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files SupplementaryMaterial01.tiff Supplementarymaterial02.docx SupplementaryMaterial03TukeyTestArticle.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7005757","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":489768221,"identity":"27dedb3e-de8c-4bf3-a904-013c195d1ac2","order_by":0,"name":"David Gilberto Torres 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ODT","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7005757/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7005757/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eLichenized fungi are particularly abundant in harsh environments. Paramos are unique neotropical mountain environments located in the northern Andes which face several treats due to human activities. The preset study evaluated the antioxidant and photoprotective activities of four paramo lichen extracts. Antioxidant activity was assessed using DPPH and FRAP assays. While photoprotective parameters (Sun protection factor - SPF, critical wavelength and spectral amplitude) were determined spectrophotometrically. Rock-inhabiting lichens such as \u003cem\u003eThamnolia\u003c/em\u003e performed better than phorophyte or soil-growing lichens, such as \u003cem\u003eLobariella\u003c/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eEverniastrum\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003ePeltigera\u003c/em\u003e. All extracts showed DPPH inhibition higher than 70% at 200 \u0026micro;g mL\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e and exhibited significant differences with BHT (92% at 20 \u0026micro;g mL\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e). Furthermore, the extracts had moderate ferric ion reducing power and were statistically different from BHT. For protection against UV-B, the \u003cem\u003ein vitro\u003c/em\u003e SPF were above 10 at 100 \u0026micro;g mL\u003csup\u003e\u0026minus;\u0026thinsp;1\u003c/sup\u003e for all extracts except extract from \u003cem\u003ePeltigera\u003c/em\u003e older thalli, with \u003cem\u003eLobariella\u003c/em\u003e proving to be the most active. \u003cem\u003eThamnolia\u003c/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eLobariella\u003c/em\u003e can be identified as potential broad-spectrum filters (λ\u003csub\u003ecrit\u003c/sub\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;367.9 and 355.8 nm), while \u003cem\u003eEverniastrum\u003c/em\u003e can be proposed as UV-B and UVA-2 filter and \u003cem\u003ePeltigera\u003c/em\u003e presented the least photoprotective activity. Either younger or older \u003cem\u003ePeltigera\u003c/em\u003e thalli were distinguished, obtaining differences in composition, antioxidant and photoprotective activity, which coincided with the optimal defense theory (ODT). Consequently, it is feasible to propose paramo lichen extracts, especially those growing on UV-exposed habitats, as sources of new photoprotective compounds. 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