Applications of Bioactive Compounds from Fungal Entomopathogens

Entomopathogenic fungi are effective biocontrol agents because of their unique mechanism of action, which includes penetrating the insect’s cuticle directly and then establishing an infection within the host’s hemocoel. But to carry out this efficient procedure, a complex biochemical toolkit is required, one that produces toxins and enzymes that aid in infection as well as host invasion. Entomopathogenic fungi have been recognized for their ability to generate secondary metabolites, including beauvericins (by Beauveria), destruxins (produced by Metarhizium), vertihemipterins (by Verticillium), hirsutellides (by Hirsutella), isarolides (by Isaria), and cordyols (by Cordyceps), which exert direct or indirect effects on insect defense mechanisms and accelerate the EPF infection process. These secondary metabolites range in complexity from very complex piperazine derivatives like vertihemiptellides to basic non-peptide pigments like oosporine. Different ways of activity are suggested by these structural disparities. Moreover, it is recognized that entomopathogenic fungi produce many secondary metabolites, which result in a wide range of bioactive substances and chemical models. Nowadays, a lot of these materials are used in pharmaceutical and agricultural applications. Within this framework, the fundamentals and uses of bioactive secondary metabolites generated by entomopathogenic fungi are covered in this chapter.