Review on Kojic Acid - A Secondary Metabolite from Aspergillus Fungi

Abstract

Fungi are an understudied, biotechnologically valuable group of organisms. Fungi have provided the world with penicillin, lovastatin, and other globally significant medicines, and they remain an untapped resource with enormous industrial potential. This review article reveals the properties, production and various uses of Kojic acid which is a secondary metabolite mainly isolated from various species of Aspergillus fungi. Kojic acid is a heterocyclic crystalline compound. It can be produced from different strains of microbes by the process of fermentation. In recent times Kojic acid plays a crucial role in cosmetics, especially in skin care products because of its UV protectant and skin lightening properties. This article is aimed to review its applications in medical, food and agricultural fields including cosmetics. Hence Kojic acid continues to attract attention of researchers because of its economic potential in various fields.