Microbes (including bacteria, fungi, protists, and archaea) drive key ecosystem functions in terrestrial ecosystems that are critical for the nutrient biogeochemical cycle, soil-structure formation, primary production, etc. The soil microbiome is suggested as a potential indicator for assessing soil quality. The microbial community found in the rhizosphere, known for its colonization around the roots due to the availability of nutrients, plays an important role in plant growth and adaptability both directly and indirectly. Many plant-microbe interactions result in beneficial outcomes for the plant, but others can promote diseases or damage plants. The rhizosphere microbe community has been the focus of extensive research during recent decades due to its impact on plant sustainability.
Rhizosphere microbes can produce a variety of metabolites in the process of growth and metabolism. Some metabolites have a great effect on soil microbes and plants. For instance, polysaccharides can promote plant growth and improve the antioxidant capacity of plants. Organic acids can regulate soil pH and inhibit the growth of harmful pathogens. Humic acids can improve plant resistance and accelerate plant growth. Moreover, both anthropogenic and natural disturbances, such as land-use patterns and fertilizer/pesticide application, can severely impact the growth of plants by manipulating the rhizosphere and bulk soil microbial diversity and thus the metabolites.
Our knowledge about the factors determining the structure and function of rhizosphere and bulk soil microbial communities has been growing due to rapid advances in molecular methods. In line with the emergence of omics technologies and with the advent of the systems biology era, the understanding of microbial diversity, function, and interaction capacity with other organisms is rapidly increasing.
This Research Topic welcomes Original Research articles and Reviews on the role of microbes-metabolites-microbial communities for plant and ecosystem outcomes, and the related interaction of microbes (e.g., plant-growth-promoting bacteria, mycorrhizal fungi, endophytes, and epiphytes) with plants, as well as the molecular aspects behind the interaction. The following sub-topics are recommended but not limited to:
1. The isolation and purification of metabolites from rhizosphere and bulk soil microbes
2. The microbial metabolites’ effects on plant growth and soil ecosystems
3. Changes in the rhizosphere and bulk soil microbial communities and the metabolites during plant growth
4. Changes in soil microbial communities, metabolites, and the related functional characteristics under human and natural disturbances
5. Mechanisms of microbial communities in nutrient cycling or organics degradation mediated by quorum sensing in soil or other environments
Microbes (including bacteria, fungi, protists, and archaea) drive key ecosystem functions in terrestrial ecosystems that are critical for the nutrient biogeochemical cycle, soil-structure formation, primary production, etc. The soil microbiome is suggested as a potential indicator for assessing soil quality. The microbial community found in the rhizosphere, known for its colonization around the roots due to the availability of nutrients, plays an important role in plant growth and adaptability both directly and indirectly. Many plant-microbe interactions result in beneficial outcomes for the plant, but others can promote diseases or damage plants. The rhizosphere microbe community has been the focus of extensive research during recent decades due to its impact on plant sustainability.
Rhizosphere microbes can produce a variety of metabolites in the process of growth and metabolism. Some metabolites have a great effect on soil microbes and plants. For instance, polysaccharides can promote plant growth and improve the antioxidant capacity of plants. Organic acids can regulate soil pH and inhibit the growth of harmful pathogens. Humic acids can improve plant resistance and accelerate plant growth. Moreover, both anthropogenic and natural disturbances, such as land-use patterns and fertilizer/pesticide application, can severely impact the growth of plants by manipulating the rhizosphere and bulk soil microbial diversity and thus the metabolites.
Our knowledge about the factors determining the structure and function of rhizosphere and bulk soil microbial communities has been growing due to rapid advances in molecular methods. In line with the emergence of omics technologies and with the advent of the systems biology era, the understanding of microbial diversity, function, and interaction capacity with other organisms is rapidly increasing.
This Research Topic welcomes Original Research articles and Reviews on the role of microbes-metabolites-microbial communities for plant and ecosystem outcomes, and the related interaction of microbes (e.g., plant-growth-promoting bacteria, mycorrhizal fungi, endophytes, and epiphytes) with plants, as well as the molecular aspects behind the interaction. The following sub-topics are recommended but not limited to:
1. The isolation and purification of metabolites from rhizosphere and bulk soil microbes
2. The microbial metabolites’ effects on plant growth and soil ecosystems
3. Changes in the rhizosphere and bulk soil microbial communities and the metabolites during plant growth
4. Changes in soil microbial communities, metabolites, and the related functional characteristics under human and natural disturbances
5. Mechanisms of microbial communities in nutrient cycling or organics degradation mediated by quorum sensing in soil or other environments
