Plant associated fungal endophytes as a source of natural bioactive compounds

Nilesh Rai; Priyanka Kumari Keshri; Ashish Verma; Swapnil C Kamble; Pradeep Mishra; Suvakanta Barik; Santosh Kumar Singh; Vibhav Gautam

doi:10.1080/21501203.2020.1870579

Plant associated fungal endophytes as a source of natural bioactive compounds

Mycology. 2021 Jan 27;12(3):139-159. doi: 10.1080/21501203.2020.1870579. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Nilesh Rai¹, Priyanka Kumari Keshri¹, Ashish Verma¹, Swapnil C Kamble², Pradeep Mishra³, Suvakanta Barik⁴, Santosh Kumar Singh¹, Vibhav Gautam¹

Affiliations

¹ Centre of Experimental Medicine and Surgery, Institute of Medical Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India.
² Department of Technology, Savitribai Phule Pune University, Ganeshkhind, Pune, India.
³ Division of Biochemistry, Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.
⁴ Chemical Engineering Discipline, Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar, Palaj, Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India.

Abstract

Endophytes are a potent source of bioactive compounds that mimic plant-based metabolites. The relationship of host plant and endophyte is significantly associated with alteration in fungal colonisation and the extraction of endophyte-derived bioactive compounds. Screening of fungal endophytes and their relationship with host plants is essential for the isolation of bioactive compounds. Numerous bioactive compounds with antioxidant, antimicrobial, anticancer, and immunomodulatory properties are known to be derived from fungal endophytes. Bioinformatics tools along with the latest techniques such as metabolomics, next-generation sequencing, and metagenomics multilocus sequence typing can potentially fill the gaps in fungal endophyte research. The current review article focuses on bioactive compounds derived from plant-associated fungal endophytes and their pharmacological importance. We conclude with the challenges and opportunities in the research area of fungal endophytes.

Keywords: Fungal endophyte; bioactive compound; biological activity; host endophytes relationship.

Publication types

Review

Grants and funding

Research in VG laboratory is supported by Science and Engineering Research Board-EMEQ project (EEQ/2019/000025), University Grants Commission, New Delhi, India and internal funding from Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India (under the Institute of Eminence Scheme).