Fungal Endophytes: Rising Tools in Sustainable Agriculture Production

Abstract

Endophytes are the microorganisms that lived inside the plant during their life cycle and develop a mutualistic or symbiotic relationship with the host plant. In mutualistic relation, the plant provides nutrition to endophyte, and in return endophyte supports the plant growth and induces immunity in the host by producing secondary metabolites. These secondary metabolites play a significant role in the inhibition of plant pathogen and pest by inducing plant defense. Some of them take part in the induction of salicylic acid, jasmonic acid, and ethylene pathways which are responsible for plant defense. Different microbes like nitrogen-fixing bacteria and mycorrhizal fungi have been explored for decades in sustainable agricultural practices; some of them are being used at a commercial level. But the role of endophytes in plant stress tolerance (biotic and abiotic) and their commercial utilization is not much explored, and researchers are only screening endophytic microbial potentials in bio-fertilizer and bio-pesticide application at lab scale. The role of bioactive compounds from fungal endophytes in sustainable agriculture is least explored. Exploration of natural phenomena of such fungal endophytes and their compounds in crop production and protection is the need of present scenario which is facing problems of pollution with synthetic chemicals and their detrimental impacts on the environment. In the current chapter, we reviewed the role of fungal endophytes and their bioactive compounds in crop production and protection. Detailed analysis of endophytes and their bioactive compounds in plant protection (antibacterial, antifungal, insecticidal, and nematicidal) and growth promotion under different abiotic stress has been presented. The challenges and limitations in commercial agricultural product development of fungal endophytes are also discussed in the chapter.