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Microbiology is the basis of sustainable agriculture: an opinion
Author(s) -
Tikhonovich I.A.,
Provorov N.A.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
annals of applied biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.677
H-Index - 80
eISSN - 1744-7348
pISSN - 0003-4746
DOI - 10.1111/j.1744-7348.2011.00489.x
Subject(s) - biology , rhizobia , ecology , agriculture , symbiosis , metagenomics , microbial ecology , sustainable agriculture , phyllosphere , microbiology and biotechnology , bacteria , genetics , gene
Agricultural microbiology is presented as a synthetic research field responsible for knowledge transfer from general microbiology and microbial ecology to the agricultural biotechnologies. The major goal of agricultural microbiology is a comprehensive analysis of symbiotic micro‐organisms (bacteria, fungi) interacting with agriculturally important plants and animals: here we have focussed on plants. In plants, interactions with micro‐organisms are diverse, ranging from two‐partite symbioses (e.g. legume–rhizobia N 2 ‐fixing nodular symbioses or arbuscular mycorrhiza) to multipartite endophytic and epiphytic (root‐associated, phyllosphere) communities. Two‐partite symbioses provide the clearest models for addressing genetic cooperation between partners, resulting in the formation of super‐organism genetic systems, which are responsible for host productivity. Analysis of these systems has now been extended considerably by using the approaches of metagenomics, which allow the dissection of taxonomic/population structures and the metabolic/ecological functions of microbial communities, which have resulted from the adaptation of free‐living, soil microflora in the endosymbiotic niches. Both beneficial (nutritional, defensive, regulatory) and antagonistic (biocontrol) functions expressed by symbiotic microbes towards their hosts are the potential subjects of effective agronomic use. A fundamental knowledge of the genetics, molecular biology, ecology and evolution of symbiotic interactions could enable the development of microbe‐based sustainable agriculture. This could achieve: (a) an improvement of major adaptive functions and productivity in crop plants by manipulating their microbial cohabitants; (b) partial or even full substitution of ecologically hazardous agrochemicals (mineral fertilizers, pesticides) by microbial preparations; (c) a decrease in the cost and an improvement of the quality of agricultural products.