Objective   Endophytes from the medicinal Paris qiliangiana plants were isolated to identify effective antipathogenic metabolites secreted.The in vitro activity of their secondary metabolites might lead to the development of new antibiotics for disease control on plants.

  Method   Endophytic fungi of P. qiliangiana plants were isolated in a disc diffusion method and identified by ITS gene sequencing. The secondary metabolites from each isolate were obtained by filter paper separation and tested for antibacterial activity against 12 pathogens. Active components were analyzed by GC-MS.

  Results   Setophoma caverna CLZ1 and Psilocybe sp. CLZ2 were the two functional endophytic fungi identified. The former showed a broad spectrum against the tested gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria including Klebsiella pneumonia ATCC 13883, Micrococcus luteus ATCC 4698, Bacillus thuringiensis ATCC 10792, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 9027, and Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 43300. Their intermediate degree of bacteriostatic activities on the pathogens had the MICs ranging from 0.78 to 3.13 mg·mL⁻¹. The latter exhibited a similar degree of inhibition against S. aureus at an MIC of 3.13 mg·mL⁻¹. The GC–MS analysis identified 36 chemicals in the S. caverna CLZ1 culture filtrate that included pyridine, nicotinamide, dibutyl phthalate, 9-octadecenoic acid (Z)-, and methyl ester methyl stearate. In the Psilocybe sp. CLZ2 filtrate, 44 compounds, including antibiotic pyridine and phenylethanols, were found.

  Conclusion   The endophytic fungi, S. caverna CLZ1 and Psilocybe sp. CLZ2, isolated from the roots of the new variety of P. qiliangiana displayed significant antibacterial property.