Abstract:Objective:To isolate endophytic fungi from Panax ginseng and study their antifungal and antitumor activities.Methods:Endophytic fungi were isolated from 5-year-old garden ginseng and 15-year-old transplanted ginseng.The antifungal active endophytes were screened with Pyricularia oryzae P-2b model using mircodilution method, and the activities of endophytes against pathogenic fungi were tested in vitro. The antitumor activities of the endophytes were examined by MTT method in vitro. Results:Sixteen (33.3%) of the 48 endophytic fungi fully suppressed the activity of P.oryzae P-2b; 11 (22.9%) colonies showed satisfactory antifungal activities against Candida albicans, Cryptococcus neoformans, Trichophyton rubrum, and Aspergillus fumigatus; and 5 (10.4%) colonies showed satisfactory antitumor activities against tumor cell lines MKN45, LOVO, HepG2, and HL-60. Among the bioactive colonies, Yuan-25 showed best antifungal activity, with its MIC80 aganinst Trichophyton rubrum being 4 mg/L, which was similar to that of fluconazole. Yuan-27 showed the best antitumor activity, with its IC50 similar to that of doxorubicin.Conclusion:Isolated endophytic fungi of Panax ginseng has antifungal and antitumor activities and is worth further exploring.