Biotechnology Bulletin ›› 2026, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (8): 22-34.doi: 10.13560/j.cnki.biotech.bull.1985.2025-1272

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Paclitaxel Production by Endophytic Fungi in Plants: Research Advances and Prospects

LONG Jun-jie1, HE Rui-xi1, NI Zi-fu1, ZHANG Min1, QI Yan-li1(), LI Cheng-wei1,2()   

  1. 1.School of Biological Engineering, Henan University of Technology, Zhengzhou 450001
    2.School of Agricultural Sciences, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001
  • Received:2025-11-21 Online:2026-08-26 Published:2026-08-17
  • Contact: QI Yan-li, LI Cheng-wei E-mail:yliqi2021@haut.edu.cn;lcw@haut.edu.cn

Abstract:

Paclitaxel is a potent tetracyclic diterpenoid anticancer agent widely used in the clinical treatment of various malignancies, including ovarian and breast cancers. Its conventional production relies on extraction from Taxus spp. (yew trees), which is constrained by resource scarcity and ecological risks. Plant endophytic fungi are promising alternative sources for paclitaxel biosynthesis, offering potential for sustainable production and industrial-scale application. This paper systematically reviews the research progress on paclitaxel production by plant endophytic fungi. In terms of isolation sources, paclitaxel-producing endophytic fungi have been isolated from diverse host plants, including gymnosperms (e.g., Taxus), angiosperms (e.g., Corylus avellana), and herbaceous plants (e.g., Artemisia argyi). Regarding microbial classification, the reported paclitaxel-producing endophytic fungi span at least 15 fungal genera, including Alternaria, Aspergillus, and Penicillium. Wild-type strains show remarkable differences in paclitaxel biosynthetic capacity, with yields ranging from micrograms per liter to milligrams per liter. Due to the heterogeneity of culture conditions and the lack of unified quantitative detection standards, no dominant high-yield strains have been clearly identified to date. At the genetic level, homologous sequences of several key genes involved in the plant paclitaxel biosynthetic pathway have been identified in paclitaxel-producing endophytic fungi, whereas the complete paclitaxel biosynthetic pathway in endophytic fungi has not been fully elucidated. Current efforts mainly focus on optimizing endophytic fungal chassis cells through strain screening, mutagenesis breeding, and gene editing. In parallel, strategies such as fermentation process optimization, metabolic regulation, and co-culture have also shown significant potential for improving paclitaxel yields in endophytic fungi. Against the backdrop of the rapidly developing field of synthetic biology, this paper proposes that future research should strengthen integrated multi-omics analysis of endophytic fungi, along with the development of synthetic biology tools and metabolic engineering approaches, so as to provide a theoretical basis and technical support for the industrial production of paclitaxel using fungi as chassis cells.

Key words: plant endophytic fungi, paclitaxel, biosynthesis, metabolic engineering, fermentation optimization