pubmed-article:9263641 | pubmed:abstractText | Yew species (Taxus spp.) throughout the world are hosts to hundreds, or perhaps thousands, of endophytic organisms. Most commonly, these organisms are fungi, living in a commensal or a symbiotic relationship with their host plant, so the plants exhibit little or no outward evidence that they are supporting these microorganisms. Little is known about any of the biochemical mechanisms that mediate the interactions between the yew host and its associated microbes. We feel that such information may not only contribute to our understanding of endophyte-tree biology, but also may provide novel pharmaceutical leads, because some of the compounds produced by these endophytes have demonstrated pharmacological activities. | lld:pubmed |