Therapeutic Potential of Endophytes of Medicinal Plants with reference to the Family Zygophyllaceae: A Review

Medicinal plants have been known for their therapeutic properties for centuries, as they are rich in uncountable and valuable phytochemical compounds. Synthesis as well as different biological aspects of such compounds in plants increases many folds in association with endophytes. These microbial endophytes reside in host plants without causing any symptoms of infection so they are gaining the attention of researchers for research in many fields such as in agriculture, medicines, environmental studies, etc. In the recent development of research, the medicinally important family Zygophyllaceae has a limited extent of microbial endophytes’ specificity. Very limited studies have been conducted on bioactive compounds isolated from endophytes and their role in health-related benefits. Therefore, this article presents a review of the evaluation of endophytes studied in plants of Zygophyllaceae for the study of bioactive compounds along with various biological activities. This review article will prominently contribute to the exploration of endophytes from medicinal plants of Zygophyllaceae as a source of bioactive and chemically novel compounds.

Keywords: Agriculture, Bioactive compounds, Environmental studies, Microbial endophytes, Zygophyllaceae.