Secondary Metabolites from Marine Endophytic Fungi: Emphasis on Recent Advances in Natural Product Research

Abstract

The marine environment is endowed with novel and rich sources of structural and functional metabolites that have prospective biomedical applications. Several marine plants, algae, and invertebrates are known to have a huge number of fungal endophytes. Until now, only a few marine-derived fungal endophytes have been identified as producers of bioactive secondary metabolites compared to the inhabitants of higher plants. These fungal endophytes were recently documented to produce a plethora of signature molecules for exploitation in industry, agriculture, and medicine. Endophytic fungi associated with marine hosts are acquiring increasing importance as promising sources of structural and biological natural products. This review presents knowledge on secondary metabolites isolated from algae in marine habitats, coral and sponge-associated endophytic fungi with a special emphasis on secondary metabolite production. The data presented in this review presents knowledge on secondary metabolites isolated from algae in marine habitats, coral and sponge-associated endophytic fungi.