Endophytes: A vital source of medicine – A review

Abstract

Soil and endosymbiotic microorganisms are naturally analogous to plant roots in a symbiotic and nonsymbiotic manner. Several groups of plant growth-promoting bacteria and fungi have been identified as bio-fertilizers and isolated microbes have been applied to farmer's agricultural fields to enhance  plant biomass and crop productivity. Overall, very few studies have been conducted on the beneficial effect of endophytic microbes on drug production in  plants. This review focuses on medicinally valuable plants and their associated endophytic bacteria and fungi to develop drug molecules against  human pathogens and other illnesses. Various secondary metabolites, including anticancer, antidiabetic, antibacterial, antifungal, and antiviral  compounds, are present in both endophytes and their host plants. The number of secondary metabolites produced by fungal endophytes and their host  plants is reported to be greater than that of endophytic bacterial species. The current proficiency of endophytic bacterial and fungal metabolites and  their bioactivity against diseases are addressed in this review.