Summary
This comprehensive review examines the belowground interactions between plants and soil microbes—with particular emphasis on arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi—and their role in plant adaptation and resilience to environmental stress. The authors integrate findings on how plant genotype, root architecture, and growing conditions shape these symbiotic relationships and their contribution to plant nutrition and protection. The review highlights emerging root phenotyping technologies, including machine learning methods, as promising tools for characterising and optimising root-microbe interactions in the context of sustainable, climate-resilient agriculture.
Regional applicability
The review's focus on belowground mechanisms and sustainable agriculture applies broadly across temperate regions including the United Kingdom, though specific recommendations would depend on UK-relevant cropping systems, soil types, and climate scenarios. The phenotyping methodologies discussed may be particularly valuable for UK research and breeding programmes seeking to enhance crop resilience to variable UK growing conditions.
Key measures
Plant resilience and productivity metrics; root phenotyping methodologies (traditional and machine learning-based); characterisation of root-microbe interactions under diverse environmental conditions
Outcomes reported
The review synthesises current understanding of root-associated microbiota, particularly arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, in mediating plant adaptation to adverse environmental conditions. It evaluates how plant genotype, root traits, and growth environments influence these interactions and plant resilience, and presents advances in root phenotyping methods including machine learning approaches.
Topic tags
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