Table 1.

Bioactive molecules produced by terrestrial microorganisms.

Classes of Natural Products			Bioactive Compound	Microorganism Classification (Kingdom; Species; Family)	Habitat	Biological Activity	CosIng Inventory3	References
Antioxidants1	Hydroxycinnamic acids		p-Coumaric acid	Fungi; A. austroafricanus; Trichocomaceae	Isolated from Z. officinale rhizome.	Antioxidant (DPPH, hydroxyl and nitric oxide radical-scavenging methods) Skin-whitening (inhibition of human tyrosinase and melanogenesis).		[31,32]
			Ferulic acid			Antioxidant (DPPH, hydroxyl and nitric oxide radical-scavenging methods) Photo-protective (SPFs: 1.3).	Antimicrobial
			Cinnamic acid			Antioxidant (DPPH, hydroxyl and nitric oxide radical-scavenging methods).	Perfuming & skin conditioning agent
			Chlorogenic acid	Cyanobacteria; Dichothrix sp.; Rivulariaceae		Antioxidant (DPPH radical scavenging activity, IC50: 6.41 μg/mL ABTS radical scavenging activity, IC50: 13.15 μg/mL Deoxyribose protective activity, IC50: 8.53 μg/mL)	Antioxidant, skin-conditioning & skin-protecting agent	[26]
			Caffeic acid	Cyanobacteria; Aulosira fertilissima; Fortieaceae		Antioxidant (DPPH radical scavenging activity, IC50: 6.34 μg/mL ABTS radical scavenging activity, IC50: 18.04 μg/mL Deoxyribose protective activity, IC50: 4.76 μg/mL)	Antioxidant & masking agent
	Stilbenes		Resveratrol	Fungi; Alternaria sp.; Pleosporaceae	Isolated from grapes of Vitis vinifera	Antioxidant (inhibition of 8-OH-dG formation in DNA, IC50: 10.9) [33]2 Skin-whitening (inhibition of mushroom tyrosinase and of melanogenesis) [34]2 Preventive effect on lipid peroxidation [29]2	Antioxidant & skin protecting agent	[30]
				Fungi; S. cerevisiae; Saccharomycetaceae				[35]
				Bacteria; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae				[36]
				Fungi; S. cerevisiae; Saccharomycetaceae	Isolated from Sugarcane.			[37]
				Bacteria; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae	Obtained from a Genetic Stock Center, New Haven, CT.			[36]
				Bacteria; Bacillus sp.; Bacillaceae	Isolated from leaves of Populus alba L.			[38]
	Biphenyls		Altenusin	Fungi; Botryosphaeria dothidea; Botryosphaeriaceae	Collected from stems of white cedar (Melia azedarach).	Antioxidant (DPPH radical scavenging activity, IC50: 17.6 μM).		[39]
			5’, Methoxy-6- methylbiphenyl-3,4,3’-triol			Antioxidant (DPPH radical scavenging activity, IC50: 18.7 μM).
	Naphthoquinone spiroketals		Palmarumycin C3	Fungi; Berkleasmium sp.; Dematiaceae	Isolated from healthy rhizomes of the medicinal plant Dioscorea zingiberensis.	Antioxidant (DPPH radical scavenging activity, IC50: 37.57 μM).		[40]
	Benzoic acids		Gallic acid	Cyanobacteria; Limnothrix obliqueacuminata; Pseudanabaenaceae		Antioxidant (DPPH radical scavenging activity, IC50: 3.53 μg/mL ABTS radical scavenging activity, IC50: 8.85 μg/mL Deoxyribose protective activity, IC50: 7.84 μg/mL)	Antioxidant	[26]
			Vanillic acid	Cyanobacteria; Mastigocladus laminosus; Hapalosiphonaceae		Antioxidant (DPPH radical scavenging activity, IC50: 416.7 μg/mL ABTS radical scavenging activity, IC50: 132.1 μg/mL Deoxyribose protective activity, IC50: 91.1 μg/mL)	Registered with no reported functions
	Thiol peptides		Glutathione	Fungi; P. pastoris; Saccharomycetaceae		Antioxidant (minimizes lipid peroxidation in cellular membranes and other such targets that is known to occur with oxidative stress) [41]2 Skin-whitening (tyrosinase inhibitor) [42]2	Reducing agent	[43]
				Bacteria; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae				[44]
	Carotenoids		Astaxanthin	Fungi; X. dendrorhous; Filobasidiaceae		Antioxidant (in vitro protection of biological membranes by an antioxidant mechanism) [45]2 Skin-whitening (inhibition of pigmentation, inhibition of melanin-generation)	Skin conditioning agent	[46]
				Chlorophyta; H. pluvialis; Haematococcaceae	Obtained from Algal Culture Center, Plant Physiology Institute, University of Gottingen, Germany.			[47]
			β-carotene	Bacteria; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae		Antioxidant (αTEAC, FRAP and CL assay) [48]2	Skin conditioning agent	[1]
			Lycopene				Antioxidant	[49]
			Canthaxanthin	Bacteria; Brevibacterium; Brevibacteriaceae		Antioxidant (in vitro protection of biological membranes by an antioxidant mechanism) [45]2 Pigment	Cosmetic colorant	[50]
			Lutein	Chlorophyta; Muriellopsis sp.; Chlamydomonadales incertae sedis	Isolated from the Natural Park of the Empordá Marshes in Catalonia, Spain.	Antioxidant (Superoxide radical scavenging activity, IC50: 21 μg/mL Hydroxyl radical scavenging activity, IC50: 1.75 μg/mL Inhibition of lipid peroxidation: 2.2 μg/mL DPPH radical scavenging activity, IC50: 35 μg/mL ABTS radical scavenging activity: >100μg/mL Nitric oxide radical scavenging activity, IC50: 3.8 μg/mL) [51]2 Photo-protective (absorption of UVA rays)	Skin conditioning agent	[52]
			Cis-canthaxanthin	Actinobacteria; D. maris; Dietziaceae	Isolated from soil sample collected from the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir, India.	Antioxidant (inhibition of ROS generation in THP-1 cells, >80%)		[53]
	Polysaccharides (PSs)	Exopolysaccharides (EPSs)	EPS fraction (PS-I); rhamno galactan	Fungi; F. solani; Nectriaceae	Isolated from A. scholaris.	Antioxidant (scavenging potency, IC50: 578.54 μg/mL)		[54]
			Unknown EPS	Bacteria; B. cereus; Bacillaceae	Isolated from A. annua L.	Antioxidant: (DPPH radical scavenging activity, EC50: 3–5 mg/mL Superoxide radical scavenging activity, EC50: 2.6 mg/mL)		[55]
			Crude EPS	Bacteria; P. polymyxa; Paenibacillaceae	Isolated from S. japonica (Blume) Miquel.	Antioxidant (hydroxyl radical scavenging activity: 87.58% at 1 mg/mL)		[56,57]
			Mannose: fructose: glucose (2.6:29.8:1)			Antioxidant (hydroxyl radical scavenging activity: 76.73% at 1 mg/mL)		[56]
			Mannose: fructose: glucose (4.2:36.6:1)			Antioxidant (hydroxyl radical scavenging activity: 68.55% at 1 mg/mL)
			Deproteinized EPS	Algae; R. reticulata; Rhodellaceae	Isolated from freshwater.	Antioxidant (superoxide anion radical scavenging activity: 328.48 U/L)		[58]
			Mannose: galactose (89.4:10.6)	Fungi; Aspergillus sp.; Trichocomaceae	Isolated from leaves of Ipomoea pes-caprae L.	Antioxidant	Mannose as humectant and galactose as skin-conditioning agent	[59]
			Rhamnose: glucose: glucuronic acid (2:2:1)	Bacteria; B. tropica; Burkholderiaceae	Isolated from Sugarcane.		Rhamnose as humectant & masking, glucose as humectant and glucuronic acid as humectant, chelating & buffering agent	[60]
			Unknown EPS	Chlorophyta; Graesiella sp.; Chlamydomonadales incertae sedis	Isolated from the hot spring ‘Ain Echffa’ (water temperature of 60 °C), Tunisia.			[61]
		Cell wall & exoskeleton PSs	Chitosan	Fungi; R. oryzae; Mucoraceae	Obtained from Culture Collection University of Gothenburg, Sweden.	Antimicrobial (higher activity on gram-positive bacteria, ex: Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) for S. aureus: 20 ppm) Moisturizing effect	Film forming & hair fixing agent	[62,63]
				Fungi; R. japonicus; Mucoraceae	Shanghai Institute of Industrial Microbiology, China.
				Fungi; M. indicus; Mucoraceae	Obtained from Culture Collection University of Gothenburg, Sweden.			[64]
				Fungi; A. niger; Trichocomaceae	Isolated from the lichen R. montagnei.			[65]
			Chitin-glucan		-			[66]
Photo-Protective agents1	Melanins		-	Bacteria; S. kathirae; Streptomycetaceae	Isolated from soil samples.	Photo-protective (determination of SPF)	Skin protecting agent	[67]
				Bacteria; Bacillus safensis; Bacillaceae				[68]
	Indole derivatives		Violacein	Bacteria; C. violaceum; Neisseriaceae	Isolated from soil sample collected from the vicinity of an oil refinery wastewater treatment plant in Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.	Photo-protective: broad absorption band extended out to 700 nm [69] Antibacterial (more efficient on Gram positive bacteria, ex: S. aureus, IC50: 6.99 μM)	Antimicrobial, antioxidant & cosmetic colorant	[70]
				Bacteria; Duganella sp.; Oxalobacteraceae.	Isolated from the glaciers of Tianshan, China.			[71]
			Scytonemin	Bacteria; N. commune; Nostocaceae	Collected from sandy soil in Ningbo University, China.	Photo-protective: UV absorbent (UV-A and UV-B region) [72] Antioxidant (dose-dependent DPPH scavenging activity of 12%, 33%, and 57% at concentrations of 0.5, 1.0, and 2.0 mg/mL, respectively. Ascorbic acid used as positive control)		[73]
			Streptochlorin	Bacteria; S. roseolilacinus; Streptomycetaceae	Isolated from soil.	Skin-whitening (anti-tyrosinase activity, IC50: 9 mM)		[74]
			Prodigiosin	Bacteria; S. marcescens; Enterobacteriaceae	Isolated from fields contaminated with pesticides.	Photo-protective Antibacterial (more efficient on Gram positive bacteria, ex: S. aureus, IC50: 0.68 μM)		[75]
				Bacteria; Vibrio sp.; Vibrionaceae	Isolated from estuarine waters of the Northern Adriatic Sea.			[76]
	Mycosporines		Palythine	Cyanobacteria; Lyngbya sp.; Oscillatoriaceae	Isolated from the bark of the rain tree Albizia saman (Jacq) Merr, Bangkok, Thailand.	Photo-protective (protection of HaCaT keratinocytes from solar-simulated radiation (SSR)-induced cell death), [77]2		[78]
			Asterina			Photo-protective
			Unknown mycosporine-like amino acid			Antioxidant (DPPH scavenging activity of 14.5%, 53.0%, and 68.9% at 0.115, 0.230, and 0.460 mg/mL of MAAs, respectively. Ascorbic acid used as positive control)
			Mycosporine-glutaminol-glucoside	Fungi; R. minuta; Sporidiobolaceae	Isolated from Patagonian natural environments	Photo-protective (UVB resistance of X. dendrorhous related to MGG production)		[79]
				Fungi; R. slooffiae; Sporidiobolaceae
				Fungi; R. lactosa; Sporidiobolaceae
				Fungi; C. liquefaciens; Tremellaceae	Isolated from a cold Arctic environment.			[80]
			Mycosporine–glutamicol–glucoside	Fungi; C. cladosporioides; Cladosporiaceae
Skin-whitening agents1	Pyrones		Kojic acid	Fungi; A. flavus; Trichocomaceae	Isolated from V. unguiculata.	Skin-whitening (anti-tyrosinase activity, IC50: 0.014 mM)	Antioxidant	[81]
				Fungi; A. oryzae; Trichocomaceae	-			[82,83]
				Fungi; A. parasiticus; Trichocomaceae	Isolated from soil.
				Fungi; A. candidus; Trichocomaceae	Isolated from soil.
				Fungi; A. flavus; Trichocomaceae	Obtained from Department of Bioprocess Technology, University Putra, Malaysia.
			(3R)-5-hydroxymellein	Endolichenic fungus	Isolated from the thalli of the lichen Parmotrema austrosinense (KoLRI no. 009806) collected from Jeju Island, Korea.	Photo-protective (damage recovery caused by UVB irradiation and inhibition of melanin synthesis) Antioxidant (DPPH radical scavenging, IC50: 30.8)		[84]
	Phenolic lactones		Ellagic acid (get by fungal bioconversion of ellagitannins)	Fungi; A. niger; Trichocomaceae	Obtained from DIA/UAdeC collection (Universidad Autonoma de Coahuila, Mexico).	Antioxidant (ABTS radical scavenging activity at 20 μg/mL: 93.9%). Skin-whitening (inhibition of melanogenesis)	Skin-conditioning agent	[85]
	Carboxylic acids		Lactic acid	Fungi; R. oryzae; Mucoraceae	Obtained from CBS-Centraalbureau voor Schimmelcultures, Utrecht, The Netherlands.	Skin-whitening [86]2 pH adjuster Exfoliant	Humectant, buffering & skin-conditioning agent	[87]
			Poly γ-glutamic acid	Bacteria; Bacillus sp.; Bacillaceae	Isolated from a soil sample collected at the Sugimoto campus of Osaka City University, Japan.	Skin-whitening Moisturizing (water-holding capacity: 56.9%) Antibacterial (more efficient on Gram-positive bacteria)		[88]
			Azelaic acid	Fungi; Malassezia furfur; Malasseziaceae		Skin-whitening (competitive inhibitor of tyrosinase: KI azelaic acid: 2.73x10-3 M) [89]2 Anti-bacterial and anti-acne effect Treatment of rosacea	Buffering & masking agent	[90,91]
	Tocopherols		Novel vitamine E succinate (bioconversion of vitamin E by modified Candida antarctica lipase B)	Fungi; C. antarctica; Saccharomycetacea		Skin-whitening effect		[92]
	Teichoic acids		Lipoteichoic acid	Bacteria; L. fermenti; Lactobacillaceae	Obtained from the National Collection of Type Cultures, Colindale, London.	Skin-whitening (inhibition of the intracellular activity of tyrosinase to 57.6% and 44.6% at 10 and 100 µg/mL of lipoteichoic acid)		[93]
	Quinones		Arbutin undecylenic acid ester	Bacteria; B. subtilis; Bacillaceae		Skin-whitening (anti-tyrosinase activity, IC50: 4.10-4 M)		[94]
Additives and other active ingredients1			Purpurogenone	Fungi; P. purpurogenum; Trichocomaceae		Pigment		[95]
			Unknown Anthraquinone derivative	Fungi; P. oxalicum var. Armeniaca; Trichocomaceae	Obtained from soil.			[96]
	Peptides & amino acid derivatives		Ectoine	Bacteria; C. glutamicum; Corynebacteriaceae		Photo-protective (in vitro inhibition of UVA- induced signal transduction in human keratinocytes as well as inhibition of UVA-induced formation of mitochondrial DNA mutations in human dermal fibroblasts), [97]2 Moisturizing effect	Skin conditioning agent	[98,99]
			Phenylalanine	Bacteria; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae	New England Biolabs (NEB, Ipswich, MA).	Hair and skin conditioning effect		[100]
	Azaphilones		Mitorubrin	Fungi; P. purpurogenum; Trichocomaceae		Pigment		[95]
	Aromatic Aldehydes & alcohols		Benzaldehyde	Bacteria; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae	New England Biolabs (NEB, Ipswich, MA).	Flavor, perfume (almond flavor)	Denaturant, flavoring, masking & perfuming agent	[100]
			Benzyl alcohol	Bacteria; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae		Flavor, perfume Preservative Bacteriostatic	Perfuming, preservative, solvent & viscosity controlling agent
			Vanillin	Bacteria; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae		Flavor, perfume (vanilla flavor)	Masking agent	[101]
				Bacteria; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae				[102]
				Bacteria; B. fusiformis; Bacillaceae	Isolated from soil.			[103]
			2-phenylethanol	Fungi; A. gossypiii; Saccharomycetaceae		Flavor, perfume (rose flavor) Preservative		[104]
				Fungi; K. marxianus; Saccharomycetaceae				[105]
	Terpenes		Limonene	Bacteria; E. coli; Enterobacteriaceae		Flavor, perfume (sweet citrus odor)	Deodorant, perfuming & solvent	[106]
	Glycolipids		Rhamnolipid	Bacteria; P. aeruginosa; Pseudomonadaceae		Moisturizing and surfactant	Emollient, emulsifying & stabilizing agent	[107]
			2,3,4,2’-trehalose tetraester	Bacteria; R. erythropolis; Nocardiaceae	Isolated from soil.	Surfactant		[108]

¹ Compounds were grouped into four categories as described in the main text. Additional activities or common uses are reported. ² Independent studies evaluating the specific compound. ³ EU Cosmetic ingredient database [14].