Volumen 61 (2022): Edición 2 (June 2022)

Medicines derived mostly from natural sources have played a major role in cancer chemotherapy for over 50 years. Against numerous ailments, plants have served as a source of bioactive compounds for centuries. However, it is not the plants themselves, but the microorganisms associated with them that offer material and products with high therapeutic potential. Endophytes are organisms that colonize internal plant tissues without causing disease symptoms. They constitute an endosymbiotic group of microorganisms which are the source of innovative natural products for use in modern industry, agriculture and medicine, indicating potential therapeutic properties, including anti-cancer and antimicrobial, as well as anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. Endophytic fungi are a rich source of bioactive metabolites that can be manipulated to obtain to produce desirable the desired new analogs used in chemotherapy, including: taxol, camptothecin, podophyllotoxin, vinblastine, vincristine, cytochalasin and many others. This review gives provides examples of anti-cancer compound production by endophytic fungi published since 2015.

Raw milk, that has not been heat-treated, can be an important source of pathogenic microorganisms transmitted via the food route, mainly such as: pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli, bacteria of the genus Salmonella, some fecal streptococci or Listeria monocyto­genes. The most dangerous of the pathogens associated with raw milk is VTEC E. coli, which produces verocytotoxins – especially the O157:H7 strain. Enterococcus spp. is a frequent factor of bovine mastitis and therefore is often found in raw milk, thus posing a risk to consumers. Consuming raw milk is a good choice as long as we have a guarantee of a high level of hygienic sourcing.