Agriculturally Important Microorganism: Understanding the Functionality and Mechanisms for Sustainable Farming

Abstract

Soil is identified to be a complex microhabitat for two distinguishing properties. Firstly, the microbial inhabitants in the soil are enormously diverse and secondly, the soil remains a structured, heterogeneous, and discontinuous system, generally poor in essential nutrients and energy sources. Soil microflora plays the most substantial part in the rhizosphere of the higher plants, where the plant growth-promoting traits of beneficial microorganisms influence the soil and plant health. Beneficial microorganisms used to improve agricultural products are broadly termed as Agriculturally Important Microorganisms (AIMs). AIMs represent a wide range of microorganisms which include Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR), Biocontrol Agents (BCA), Plant Growth-Promoting Fungi (PGPF), Actinomycetes, Mycorrhiza, and Endophytes. AIMs can influence plant growth and the health of the soil through direct and indirect mechanisms along with molecular signaling. Plant signaling molecules play important roles in efficient root colonization, modulation of root system architecture, cell to cell communication, gene regulation, plant immunity development process, and finally, influence plant health. Integration of Agriculturally Important Microorganisms in agriculture is a promising sustainable solution to improve production, however, commercialization of bioformulations will require addressing a number of issues like a selection of broad-spectrum microbial strains, retention of quality and efficacy under field conditions, and product registration. A rational approach to comprehend the key mechanisms associated with AIMs-Plant interaction and development of model-based inoculum would facilitate productive field application and sustainable agriculture production under the changing climatic conditions.