Summary
This narrative review examines the complex interactions between plants and phyllosphere microbiomes—the microbial communities inhabiting aerial plant surfaces—under conditions of global environmental change. The phyllosphere is characterised as an open system vulnerable to environmental perturbations including climate variability, pollution, and atmospheric shifts, all of which alter plant–microbe interactions and ecosystem functions. The authors synthesise evidence on how global change drivers affect microbiome composition and plant performance, and propose future research priorities to better understand these interconnected systems.
UK applicability
Findings are applicable to UK agriculture and horticulture, particularly regarding how climate change, air quality variations, and atmospheric CO₂ shifts may alter crop and wild plant microbiomes and associated functions such as disease suppression and nutrient cycling. However, as a global review without UK-specific field data, its direct applicability to UK-specific farming systems depends on future localised research.
Key measures
Qualitative synthesis of phyllosphere microbiome composition, plant performance metrics, and ecosystem process responses to global change drivers (climate, atmospheric pollution, elevated CO₂, etc.)
Outcomes reported
This review synthesises current knowledge of interactions between plants and their phyllosphere microbiomes under global change conditions. The authors identify priority research areas for understanding how environmental perturbations affect plant–microbe crosstalk and ecosystem functions.
Topic tags
Dig deeper with Pulse AI.
Pulse AI has read the whole catalogue. Ask about this record, its theme, or how the findings apply to UK farming and policy — every answer cites the underlying studies.