Exploring Endophytes as a Treasure House of Bioprospecting Compounds, Emphasizing Their Significance in the Agricultural and Pharmaceutical Fields
摘要
Endophytes are endosymbiont microorganisms that colonize internal plant tissues without eliciting any adverse effect on the host. This chapter aims at navigating the potential of endophytes as a treasure trove for agricultural and pharmaceutical purposes. Endophytes possess the ability to stimulate plant growth and optimize nutrient absorption, resulting in superior agricultural productivity. They can condition plants to develop tolerance to abiotic stresses such as salinity, drought, and arid conditions. Endophyte-derived bioactive compounds, namely acyl-homoserine lactones, diacetylphloroglucinol, and pyoluteorincan control phytopathogens and inhibit weed growth. Endophytes produce non-ribosomal peptides and polyketides that immunize the host plants to various pathogen-borne diseases. Moreover, endophytes serve as an environmentally friendly, cost-effective, and enduring substitute for conventional agricultural approaches by eliminating the reliance on artificial fertilizers and pesticides. Endophytes synthesize a diverse array of secondary metabolites, including flavonoids, carotenoids, melatonins, terpenoids, phenolics, alkaloids, and peptides that possess antimicrobial, anticancerous, and pesticidal attributes. Approximately 42% of clinically authorized medications have been derived from natural sources or their derivatives, with a sizeable number being acquired from endophytes. Endophytic fungi have emerged as a viable alternative to plant-extracted secondary metabolites owing to the risks associated with unregulated plant collection, which endangers numerous plant species. Despite their illimitable potential, additional research is necessary to comprehensively harness their capabilities. Further assessment of the pharmaceutical prospects of endophytes requires advanced biotechnological techniques like multi-locus sequence typing, metabolomics, metagenomics, and next-generation sequencing. Continued endeavors to recognize, describe, and comprehend endophyte-plant interactions will conceivably enable practical implementations in both domains.