ABSTRACT
Aspergillus niger PN2 an endophytic fungus, was isolated from the healthy tissues of Taxus baccata. The fungus was screened for the production of lovastatin on a solid state fermentation with wheat bran as a substrate. The fungal species were identified by their characteristic cultural morphology and molecular analysis. The presence of lovastatin was confirmed by spectroscopic method, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), thin layer chromatography (TLC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) methods of analysis. The lovastatin production was quantified by ultraviolet (UV) analysis. The maximum amount of lovastatin production was recorded as 1.5 mg/g substrate. The extracted fungal lovastatin demonstrate a strong cytotoxic activity in in vitro culture of tested human cancer cells (HeLa and HepG2) by apoptotic assay. These results designate that the fungus, A. niger PN2 is an excellent candidate for lovastatin production and can serve as a potential organism for genetic engineering to enhance the production of lovastatin to a higher level.