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Book ChapterDOI

Unravelling the Role of Endophytes in Micronutrient Uptake and Enhanced Crop Productivity

TL;DR: The present article focuses on understanding the taxonomy of endophytes and their functions in nutrient uptake and sustainable crop production.
Abstract: Endophytes belong to the domain of bacterial and fungal species that inhabit the host plant and associates symbiotically with plant tissue. The most common forms of endophytes are found to be associated with the species of Enterobacter, Colletotrichum, Phyllosticta, etc. Some of the potent methods of emerging sustainable agriculture to make sure enhancement in crop production having a minimal disturbance caused to environment are exploration of beneficial microbial interactions with plants. The endophytic interactions with plants are advantageous to both the host plant as well as for endophytic microorganism. The ecological and environmental conditions of the host plant significantly influence the associated endophytic population. Endophytes functions as plant growth promoters; enhance uptake of minerals and nutrients; restrict the survival of phytopathogens and increase plant tolerance to environmental stress. The study of functions and host-endophytic relations is important to focus on endophytic significance. Over recent years, substantial studies have been carried out based on their potential to produce valuable substances responsible to enhance plant growth, biocontrol potential as well as their sustenance in adverse environment. The present article focuses on understanding the taxonomy of endophytes and their functions in nutrient uptake and sustainable crop production.
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors highlighted the plant microbiome aboveground and belowground, importance of microbial inoculants in various plant species, and their subsequent interactive mechanisms for sustainable agriculture.
Abstract: The present scenario of agricultural sector is dependent hugely on the use of chemical-based fertilizers and pesticides that impact the nutritional quality, health status, and productivity of the crops. Moreover, continuous release of these chemical inputs causes toxic compounds such as metals to accumulate in the soil and move to the plants with prolonged exposure, which ultimately impact the human health. Hence, it becomes necessary to bring out the alternatives to chemical pesticides/fertilizers for improvement of agricultural outputs. The rhizosphere of plant is an important niche with abundant microorganisms residing in it. They possess the properties of plant growth promotion, disease suppression, removal of toxic compounds, and assimilating nutrients to plants. Utilizing such beneficial microbes for crop productivity presents an efficient way to modulate the crop yield and productivity by maintaining healthy status and quality of the plants through bioformulations. To understand these microbial formulation compositions, it becomes essential to understand the processes going on in the rhizosphere as well as their concrete identification for better utilization of the microbial diversity such as plant growth-promoting bacteria and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Hence, with this background, the present review article highlights the plant microbiome aboveground and belowground, importance of microbial inoculants in various plant species, and their subsequent interactive mechanisms for sustainable agriculture.

89 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors highlight the importance of microbes derived from cultivated and natural tea rhizospheres to understand the role of AMF and rhizosphere bacterial population to improve plant growth, enhancement of tea quality, and protecting tea plants from pathogens.

16 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper , the authors compared the genomes of rhizospheric plant growth-promoting bacteria with endophytic bacteria to characterize the genetic diversity and dynamics of endophyte interaction in different host plants.
Abstract: Endophytic bacteria are mainly present in the plant’s root systems. Endophytic bacteria improve plant health and are sometimes necessary to fight against adverse conditions. There is an increasing trend for the use of bacterial endophytes as bio-fertilizers. However, new challenges are also arising regarding the management of these newly discovered bacterial endophytes. Plant growth-promoting bacterial endophytes exist in a wide host range as part of their microbiome, and are proven to exhibit positive effects on plant growth. Endophytic bacterial communities within plant hosts are dynamic and affected by abiotic/biotic factors such as soil conditions, geographical distribution, climate, plant species, and plant-microbe interaction at a large scale. Therefore, there is a need to evaluate the mechanism of bacterial endophytes’ interaction with plants under field conditions before their application. Bacterial endophytes have both beneficial and harmful impacts on plants but the exact mechanism of interaction is poorly understood. A basic approach to exploit the potential genetic elements involved in an endophytic lifestyle is to compare the genomes of rhizospheric plant growth-promoting bacteria with endophytic bacteria. In this mini-review, we will be focused to characterize the genetic diversity and dynamics of endophyte interaction in different host plants.

2 citations

References
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is shown that NC-endophytes represent three distinct functional groups based on host colonization and transmission, in planta biodiversity and fitness benefits conferred to hosts, and key questions for future work in endophyte biology are highlighted.
Abstract: Summary 1 Summary All plants in natural ecosystems appear to be symbiotic with fungal endophytes. This highly diverse group of fungi can have profound impacts on plant communities through increasing fitness by conferring abiotic and biotic stress tolerance, increasing biomass and decreasing water consumption, or decreasing fitness by altering resource allocation. Despite more than 100 yr of research resulting in thousands of journal articles, the ecological significance of these fungi remains poorly characterized. Historically, two endophytic groups (clavicipitaceous (C) and nonclavicipitaceous (NC)) have been discriminated based on phylogeny and life history traits. Here, we show that NC-endophytes represent three distinct functional groups based on host colonization and transmission, in planta biodiversity and fitness benefits conferred to hosts. Using this framework, we contrast the life histories, interactions with hosts and potential roles in plant ecophysiology of C- and NC-endophytes, and highlight several key questions for future work in endophyte biology.

2,278 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Rhizobacteria-mediated induced systemic resistance (ISR) is effective under field conditions and offers a natural mechanism for biological control of plant disease.
Abstract: Nonpathogenic rhizobacteria can induce a systemic resistance in plants that is phenotypically similar to pathogen-induced systemic acquired resistance (SAR). Rhizobacteria-mediated induced systemic resistance (ISR) has been demonstrated against fungi, bacteria, and viruses in Arabidopsis, bean, carnation, cucumber, radish, tobacco, and tomato under conditions in which the inducing bacteria and the challenging pathogen remained spatially separated. Bacterial strains differ in their ability to induce resistance in different plant species, and plants show variation in the expression of ISR upon induction by specific bacterial strains. Bacterial determinants of ISR include lipopolysaccharides, siderophores, and salicylic acid (SA). Whereas some of the rhizobacteria induce resistance through the SA-dependent SAR pathway, others do not and require jasmonic acid and ethylene perception by the plant for ISR to develop. No consistent host plant alterations are associated with the induced state, but upon challenge inoculation, resistance responses are accelerated and enhanced. ISR is effective under field conditions and offers a natural mechanism for biological control of plant disease.

2,146 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is suggested that bacterial IAA plays a major role in the development of the host plant root system.
Abstract: Many plant-associated bacteria synthesize the phytohormone indoleacetic acid (IAA). While IAA produced by phytopathogenic bacteria, mainly by the indoleacetamide pathway, has been implicated in the induction of plant tumors, it is not clear whether IAA synthesized by beneficial bacteria, usually via the indolepyruvic acid pathway, is involved in plant growth promotion. To determine whether bacterial IAA enhances root development in host plants, the ipdc gene that encodes indolepyruvate decarboxylase, a key enzyme in the indolepyruvic acid pathway, was isolated from the plant growth-promoting bacterium Pseudomonas putida GR12-2 and an IAA-deficient mutant constructed by insertional mutagenesis. The canola seedling primary roots from seeds treated with wild-type P. putida GR12-2 were on average 35 to 50% longer than the roots from seeds treated with the IAA-deficient mutant and the roots from uninoculated seeds. In addition, exposing mung bean cuttings to high levels of IAA by soaking them in a suspension of the wild-type strain stimulated the formation of many, very small, adventitious roots. Formation of fewer roots was stimulated by treatment with the IAA-deficient mutant. These results suggest that bacterial IAA plays a major role in the development of the host plant root system.

1,737 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The individual steps of plant colonization are described and the known mechanisms responsible for rhizosphere and endophytic competence are surveyed to better predict how bacteria interact with plants and whether they are likely to establish themselves in the plant environment after field application as biofertilisers or biocontrol agents.
Abstract: In both managed and natural ecosystems, beneficial plant-associated bacteria play a key role in supporting and/or increasing plant health and growth. Plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) can be applied in agricultural production or for the phytoremediation of pollutants. However, because of their capacity to confer plant beneficial effects, efficient colonization of the plant environment is of utmost importance. The majority of plant-associated bacteria derives from the soil environment. They may migrate to the rhizosphere and subsequently the rhizoplane of their hosts before they are able to show beneficial effects. Some rhizoplane colonizing bacteria can also penetrate plant roots, and some strains may move to aerial plant parts, with a decreasing bacterial density in comparison to rhizosphere or root colonizing populations. A better understanding on colonization processes has been obtained mostly by microscopic visualisation as well as by analysing the characteristics of mutants carrying disfunctional genes potentially involved in colonization. In this review we describe the individual steps of plant colonization and survey the known mechanisms responsible for rhizosphere and endophytic competence. The understanding of colonization processes is important to better predict how bacteria interact with plants and whether they are likely to establish themselves in the plant environment after field application as biofertilisers or biocontrol agents.

1,705 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The latest paradigms of applicability of these beneficial rhizobacteria in different agro-ecosystems have been presented comprehensively under both normal and stress conditions to highlight the recent trends with the aim to develop future insights.

1,630 citations