A Endophytic Fungal Diversity in Medicinal Plants of Kenya: Azadirachta indica A. Juss and Melia azedarach L.
Authors: Osano, A., Dill, R., Okoth, S., Arnold, E., Lee, M.-m., Chery, V., Amakhobe, T., Oballa, G., Egami, H., Aran, P., Bauer, E., Maro, C., Oyekanmi, J.
Category: Plant Biology
Model Organism: Azadirachta indica and Melia azedarach
▶ AI Summary
The study isolated and identified endophytic fungi from various tissues of the medicinal plants Azadirachta indica (neem) and Melia azedarach (melia) in Kenya, recovering 95 fungi from neem and 46 from melia, with a predominance of ascomycetes such as Phomopsis, Penicillium, Colletotrichum, and Preussia. Leaf tissues yielded the highest fungal richness, especially in neem, and geographic variation in dominant species was observed, highlighting the potential of these endophytes as sources of bioactive secondary metabolites.