Epichloë endophytes in forage
grasses have attracted widespread attention and interest of chemistry
researchers as a result of the various unique chemical structures
and interesting biological activities of their secondary metabolites.
This review describes the diversity of unique chemical structures
of taxa from Epichloë endophytes
and grass infected with Epichloë endophytes and demonstrates their reported biological activities.
Until now, nearly 160 secondary metabolites (alkaloids, peptides,
indole derivatives, pyrimidines, sesquiterpenoids, flavonoids, phenol
and phenolic acid derivatives, aliphatic metabolites, sterols, amines
and amides, and others) have been reported from Epichloë endophytes and grass infected with Epichloë endophytes. Among these, non-alkaloids account for half of the population
of total metabolites, indicating that they also play an important
role in Epichloë endophytes
and grass infected with Epichloë endophytes. Also, a diverse array of secondary metabolites isolated
from Epichloë endophytes and
symbionts is a rich source for developing new pesticides and drugs.
Bioassays disclose that, in addition to toxic alkaloids, the other
metabolites isolated from Epichloë endophytes and symbionts have notable biological activities, such
as antifungal, anti-insect, and phytotoxic activities. Accordingly,
the biological functions of non-alkaloids should not be neglected
in the future investigation of Epichloë endophytes and symbionts.