Pullusurfactans A–E, new biosurfactants produced by Aureobasidium pullulans A11211-4-57 from a fleabane, Erigeron annus (L.) pers.

Yeast biosurfactants have potent applications in medical, cosmeceutical, and food industries due to their specific modes of action, low toxicity, and applicability. In this study, biosurfactant-producing yeasts were screened for various industrial applications. Among them, Aureobasidium pullulans strain A11211-4-57 with potent surfactant activity from fleabane flower, Erigeron annus (L.) pers., was selected. From culture supernatant of strain A11211-4-57, five new low-surface-tension chemicals designated as pullusurfactans A–E were identified through consecutive chromatography steps, involving ODS, silica gel, Sephadex LH-20, and ODS Sep-pak cartridge columns. Based on mass and NMR measurements, structures of pullusurfactans A–E were determined as myo-inositol lipids with molecular formulae of C ₂₀ H ₃₅ O _9, C ₁₈ H ₃₂ O ₈ , C ₂₀ H ₃₅ O ₉ , C ₂₄ H ₄₂ O ₉ , and C ₁₈ H ₃₂ O ₈ , respectively. These compounds exhibited potent biosurfactant activities (22.90, 22.40, 32.28, 25.28, and 22.44 mN/m, respectively). These results suggest that these novel biosurfactants have potential use as biosurfactants in industrial aspect.