2 Biological survey of endophytes
2.1 Distribution and biodiversity
Almost all vascular plant species examined to date were found
to harbor endophytic bacteria and/or fungi.Moreover, the
colonization of endophytes in marine algae mosses and
ferns has also been recorded. As a matter of fact, endophytes
are important components of microbial biodiversity. Commonly,
several to hundreds of endophyte species can be isolated
from a single plant, among them, at least one species showing
host specificity. The environmental conditions under which the
host is growing also affect the endophyte population, and the
endophyte profile may be more diversified in tropical areas.
Arnold et al. isolated 418 endophyte morphospecies (estimated
347 genetically distinct taxa) from 83 healthy leaves of Heisteria
concinna and Ouratea lucens in a lowland tropical forest of
central Panama, and proposed that tropical endophytes themselves
could be hyperdiverse with host preference and spatial
heterogeneity. Moreover, genotypic diversity has been observed
in single endophyte species originating from conifers
birchand grasses. Accordingly, endophytes are presumably
ubiquitous in the plant kingdom with the population being
dependent on host species and location