Endophytic fungi in Nepalese Taxus needles Raw sequence reads. Endophytic fungi in Nepalese Taxus needles

Taxus species are considered endangered in Nepal and the whole Himalayas primarily because they are a source of a chemotherapeutic drug, Taxol, effective against several cancers. Such a primary species decline is likely to also lead to decline or extinction of associated species including endophytic fungi. We surveyed the endophytic mycobiome in needles from Taxus wallichiana and Taxus contorta across six districts in Nepal to describe existing diversity of fungi inhabiting the needles of Taxus in these areas.