LAUSR

Plant fungal endophytes are diverse microbial sources that reside inside the plants. Grapes (Vitis vinifera) are rich in polyphenols with health benefits and recent research showed fungal endophytes in grapes may contribute to the production of these polyphenols and as biocontrol agents. In this study, we determined the fungal microbial endophyte diversity in fruit of the North American table grapes found in Winnipeg market. Amplicon ITS (internal transcribed spacer) metagenomics approach was used to profile the fungal communities of the fruit endophyte microbiome of three table grape types. The data supported endophyte diversity in different table grapes including possible bioactive producing, saprophytic, and pathogenic fungi. Culturable endophytes were isolated and identified by morphology and ITS-amplicon sequencing. Majority of the isolated culturable strains included Alternaria spp and Cladosporium spp. The results provided evidence of diverse fungal endophytes isolated and identified from the fruit of the table grapes and these fungal endophytes may have potential in agricultural, industrial, and pharmaceutical applications.