Summary
This narrative review examines endophytic microbes—bacteria, actinomycetes and fungi inhabiting plant tissues—as candidates for enhancing agricultural sustainability and environmental resilience. Endophytes regulate host stress responses, facilitate nutrient cycling and mineral solubility through organic acid secretion and siderophore production, and synthesise bioactive compounds of pharmaceutical interest. The review suggests that improved understanding of endophyte entry, colonisation, and stress-tolerance genetics could enable crop improvement under changing climatic conditions and contaminated environments.
UK applicability
The findings are relevant to UK agriculture, particularly for developing climate-resilient cropping systems and reducing reliance on synthetic inputs. However, application would require field validation in UK pedoclimatic conditions and regulatory approval for endophyte inoculants.
Key measures
Literature analysis based on SCOPUS database; mechanisms of endophyte-mediated stress tolerance, nutrient solubility enhancement, secondary metabolite production, and molecular/biochemical pathways of endophyte colonisation
Outcomes reported
The review synthesises research on endophytic bacteria, actinomycetes and fungi as biotechnological tools for enhancing crop stress tolerance and improving agricultural sustainability. It examines mechanisms by which endophytes confer resistance to abiotic stresses (drought, salinity), biotic stresses (disease), and aid in bioremediation of environmental contaminants.
Topic tags
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