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Mini-Review Article

Do symbiotic microbes have a role in regulating plant performance and response to stress?

Jerry R. Barrow, Mary E. Lucero, Isaac Reyes-Vera and Kris M. Havstad

This is an open-access article

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Vascular plants have been considered as autonomous organisms especially when their performance has been interpreted at the genome and cellular level. In reality, vascular plants provide a unique ecological niche for diverse communities of cryptic symbiotic microbes which often contribute multiple benefits, such as enhanced photosynthetic efficiency, nutrient and water use and tolerance to abiotic and biotic stress. These benefits are similar to improvements sought by plant scientists working to develop ecologically sustainable crops for food, fiber and biofuels. Native desert plants include a community of indigenous endosymbiotic fungi that are structural components with cells, tissues, cell cultures, and regenerated plants. These fungi regulate plant growth and development and contribute genes and natural products that enable plants to adapt to changing environments. A method developed for transferring these endophytes from cell cultures to non-host plants promises to be a revolutionary approach for the development of novel plant germplasm and has application in the field of plant biotechnology.

Authors

Jerry R. Barrow

USDA-ARS

Mary E. Lucero

USDA-ARS

Isaac Reyes-Vera

USDA-ARS

Kris M. Havstad

USDA-ARS

This is an open-access article

 Download PDF

If the document does not open, please right-click on the link (control-click on a Macintosh) and select the option to save the file to disk.