Entomogenous fungi that produce 2,6-pyridine dicarboxylic acid (dipicolinic acid)

An inhibitor of the prophenoloxidase activation using extract from a silkworm pupa was isolated from a culture filtrate of Cordyeeps militaris and identified as dipicolinic acid (DPA). The production of DPA in Clavicipitaceae fungi was examined. Entomogenous fungi that produce DPA were integrated into one group by a phylogenetic analysis based on 18S rDNA. It is suggested that the group acquired an ability to produce DPA during its evolution from plant pathogenic fungi to entomogenous fungi.