Cyclodepsipeptides: Isolation from Endophytic Fungi of and Verification of Their Larvicidal Activity via In-Vitro and In-Silico Studies.

mosquitoes are vectors to many viruses and can transmit diseases such as filariasis and avian malaria. The present study evaluated the larvicidal activity of marine-derived endophytic fungi and from the soft coral along with two known cyclodepsipeptide compounds, scopularide A () and B (2), isolated from extract, against third-instar larvae of , using distilled water as a negative control and toosenedanin as a positive control. The structures of the isolated compounds were confirmed by various spectroscopic analyses. The lethal concentrations (LC and LC) were calculated by probit analysis. Scopularide A was the most potent after 96 h treatment, with LC and LC values of 58.96 and 994.31 ppm, respectively, and with 82.66% mortality at a concentration of 300 ppm. To unravel the biochemical mechanism of the tested extracts and compounds, their effects against protease, chitinase, phenoloxidases and lipase enzymes from the whole-body tissue of were evaluated after 72 h treatment at LC dose. Superior activity was observed for extract against all tested enzymes. A molecular docking study was conducted for scopularide A and B on the four tested enzymes, to further verify the observed activity. Results revealed good binding affinities for both compounds as compared to the docked ligands, mainly via a number of hydrogen bonds. This was the first study to report the isolation of endophytic fungi and from the marine soft coral The endophytic fungal extract of was found to be a promising source for a natural larvicidal agent against populations.