Myxomycetes are important in ecosystem especially as food for insects even for animals

and some species are edible for humans. The dish called Caca de Luna from immature

sporophores of Enteridium lycoperdon are fried and eaten in Mexico (Keller and Everhart,

2010). They are also important as bioremediation which they absorb heavy metals for biological

detoxification of high toxic level of zinc exhibiting mostly in the species of Fuligo septica

(Keller and Everhart, 2010).

Myxomycetes also act as a bio-control agent which reduces the count of spores of soil-

dwelling plant pathogen ( Dagamac et al., 2015, Dela Cruz et al., 2012). On the other hand, in

terms of soil biology and biochemistry, the Mycetozoans including myxomycetes are indeed

the most abundant organism as protozoans in the soil which genuinely distribute nutrients within

its medium (Taylor et al., 2015). However, there are several components isolated from

myxomycetes such as Fuligoic (Shintani et al., 2009), Physarochrom A (Steffan et al., 1987) and

Bisindole alkaloid which affects its life cycle (Nakatani et al., 2003).

In the field of biological resource technology, it is discovered that it contains three

fundamental fatty acids mainly olic, linoic and palmitoleic suggesting that it has a potential

source of biodiesel products, this case a can adds up our resources of fuel for energy these can

help the land with low resources of fuel since myxomycetes are can be found almost in every

part of the world (Tran et al., 2012).

According to from Keller and Everhart (2010), the experiment in the plasmodial form of

Didymium iridis and Physarum cinerum that was designed to determine their lifespan and

senescence showed that aging\longevity is not controlled by cytoplasmic factor but instead

genetic nuclear control.

 Huynh suggested that the exopolysaccharides isolated from plasmodia of Physarum

polycephalum can be a prospect to be a source of antifungal compounds and Physarella oblonga

can be a potential source of anticancer compounds. On the other hand Physarum polycephalum

are also said to have an anti-cancer agent, this species of myxomycetes can able to treat cancer

with a non-immunogenic, non-toxic, and biodegradable nanoconjugate drug delivery system

called Polycefin and through modifications it can directly deliver the morpholino antisense

oligonucleotides or gene silencing therapy, antibodies, and anti-tumor drugs to certain tumor

cells and through preliminary testing it revealed that fluorescently labeled Polycefin can be

injected in to the tail vein of a mouse and accumulates within breast and brain tumor cells. (

Keller and Everhart, 2010).

Myxomycetes can also be a possible caused of aeroallergens, through research, with a

250 human test subjects with rhinitis or asthma undergo through intradermal testing using an

untainted spore extract of F. septica. Reactivity in this population was 40 %. A subset of

positive and negative subjects was given a radioallergosorbent test and this RAST protocol is a

blood test used to determine what substances are allergenic. There was a 95 % concordance

between the RAST and skin testing. This study concluded that F. septica was an important

aeroallergen and should be used in the diagnosis and treatment of atopic patients Individuals

hypersensitive to mold spores should use face masks to avoid contact with slime mold spores

produced by common aethalioid taxa such as Enteridium, Fuligo, and Lycogala and sporangia

produced in massive numbers such as certain taxa of Physarum and Stemonitis. ( Keller and

Everhart, 2010) which is also relative to the study of Lierl (2013).

Myxomycetes fruiting bodies contain a novel antimicrobial compounds and very

important to advance the field of medicine and adds up our resources. The fruiting bodies of
Acryria denudate which contains arcyriaflavin A and B, Acryria ferruginea contains

arcyriaflavin C, Dictydiaethalium plumbeum which contain arcyriaflavin D, Lycogala

epidendrum which contains arcyriaflavin A and B and arcyriarubin A and Tubifera casparyi

contains arcyriaflavin A and C. ( Keller and Everhart 2010).

Myxomycetes can be used as anti-herpes simplex virus especially the species of lycogala

epidendrum which contain three novel dimethyl pyrroledicarboxylate named lycogarubins A and

C. which can inhibit the HSV- I (Keller and Everhart (2010) and Hashimoto et al., (1994).

Approximately, 983 species were recorded worldwide (Okak, 2015). Of these, 252

species were documented for Turkey (Suerdem et al., 2015). Myxomycetes are broadly

disseminated both in temperate and tropical regions. Studies showed the presence of

myxomycetes in Koroglubeli, Turkey (Takahashi 2015), Guatemala and Costa Rica, (Rojas et

al., 2012), Thailand (Tran et al., 2008) Mexico (Estrada-Torres et al., 2009), USA (Ndiritu et al.,

2009), South America and Chile (Wrigley de Basanta et al., 2010), Singapore (Rosing et al.,

2011), Myanmar (Ko Ko et al., 2013), and Laos (Ko Ko et al., 2012).

Microbial flora such Myxomycetes are poorly studied in the Philippines (Dagamac et al.,

2012). Dagamac et al, (2012, 2015) reported 107 species of myxomycetes of different provinces

within the Philippines at the time. The first documented data about myxomycetes in the

Philippines gathered from Batangas, Pampanga, Quezon City, Lubang Island, Occidental

Mindoro (Cheng et.al .,2013) and Oriental Mindoro (Dagamac et al., 2015) Zambales, Davao,

Cotabato, Zamboanga, Cavite, Laguna (Macabago et al., 2016).

Furthermore, Cheng et.al. (2013) reported 13 species belonging to eight genera in the

northern slope of Mt. Makulot Cuenca, Batangas, Physarum globuliferum have the highest
number of collection followed by genus Arcyria denudate and Didymium nigripes. The

myxomycetes collected from moist chamber showed 17 species. Of these, eight genera were

identified which revealed that genus Physarum has the most number of species namely P.

compressum, P. globuliferum, P. melleum and Physarum sp. Arcyria cinerea was recorded as the

most abundant species which are relative to the studies of Dagamac et al., (2012, and 2015) and

Macabago et al., (2016).

Mt. Arayat National Park, Pampanga revealed 21 species belonging to 11 genera

determined by moist culture method. The 21 species were distributed among Arcyria and

Physarum (four each), Collaria, Cribraria, Craterium, Diachea, Licea, Perihaena, Physarella,

Stemonitis (one each) Diderma (three) and Didymium (two) (Dagamac et.al, 2012). Another

study of Dagamac et.al., (2015) in Coastal Mountain and Community forest at Puerto Galera,

Oriental Mindoro, reported 42 species belonging to 16 genera which the nine species were

abundant (five) common species (14) occasional species and (14) rare species.

Even though there’s a lot of citation upon myxomycetes, the scientist in the Philippines

mostly focuses on the biodiversity of myxomycetes and most of their citation are from foreign

scientist such as dagamac et al., (2011) and few Filipino scientists pursue to study myxomycetes.