A review on secondary metabolites from endophytic fungi as potential source of bioactive substances for cosmeceutical products

Over the last century, research on the exploration of endophytic fungi has received tremendous attention worldwide due to their potency as an important source of natural bioactive compounds, particularly for the biomedical sectors. The biodiversity of the isolated bioactive compounds has shown various bioactivities, such as antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-wrinkle, anti-pigmentation, antimicrobial, and anti-cancer. Concurrently, the cosmeceutical sector has experienced substantial market growth in recent decades, especially for cosmeceutical products with naturally occurring bioactive compounds. This trend is attributed to the growing concern of consumers over the hazardous effects of synthetic active substances, expecting greater biocompatibility, safety, and environmental friendliness. The current review focuses on endophytic fungi-derived secondary metabolites exerting cosmeceutical-related bioactivities. Special emphasis is placed on secondary metabolites with antioxidant, anti-melanogenic, and anti-inflammatory activities and a discussion of the main bioactive compounds and their respective bioassays. The wide array of bioactive compounds produced by the same fungal genus obtained from different plants. This review found that several endophytic fungal active compounds have better activities than standard compounds, reflecting the potential compounds for bioactive substances. This review also elaborates the challenge of increasing the scale of bioactive production by endophytic fungi on an industrial scale, which requires optimization of various parameters.