Enhancing agricultural resilience through plant-microbe interactions: a key challenge for sustainable farming

From Top Italian Scientists Journal
Published
June 28, 2025
Title
Enhancing agricultural resilience through plant-microbe interactions: a key challenge for sustainable farming
Authors
Federica Tenaglia, Fabiano Sillo, Walter Chitarra, Raffaella Balestrini
DOI
10.62684/WYXR4973
Keywords
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, Plant resilience, Soil microorganisms, Dissemination activities
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Federica Tenaglia(a), Fabiano Sillo(b), Walter Chitarra(c), Raffaella Balestrini(d)

(a) National research Council, Department of Biology, Agriculture and Food Sciences

(b) National Research Council, Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection

(c) Council for Agricultural Research and Economics, Research Centre for Viticulture and Enology

(d) National Research Council, Institute of Biosciences and Bioresources

Correspondence to: Raffaella Balestrini, raffaellamaria.balestrini@cnr.it


Abstract

Modern agriculture faces the dual challenge of increasing food production while reducing environmental impact, especially in the context of climate change. One promising solution lies in harnessing the natural relationships between plants and beneficial microbes. These interactions can help crops use resources more efficiently, become more resistant to stress, and reduce the need for chemical treatments. This review focuses on grapevine and rice, two globally important crops, as examples to highlight how root-associated microbes can support more sustainable farming. Thanks to recent advances in DNA sequencing and microbial research, scientists are now able to design specific microbial mixtures, known as synthetic communities (SynComs), tailored to improve plant health. However, key challenges remain, such as selecting the right microbes, ensuring their stability, and applying them effectively in the field. At the same time, breeding crop varieties that are more responsive to helpful microbes is becoming increasingly important. The Micro4Life project, funded by AGER, explores these topics by studying how crops and their microbiomes interact under different environmental conditions. It also promotes field-based research and continuous dialogue with farmers to ensure that scientific advances address real-world needs and constraints. This approach not only opens new opportunities to make agriculture more resilient and environmentally friendly but also delivers economic benefits—such as improved productivity and efficiency—and strengthens the resilience of farming communities by empowering local stakeholders and integrating traditional knowledge.

Declarations

Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to all the Micro4Life partners and colleagues.

Conflict of Interest

The Authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Funding

The authors have no funding sources to report.

Author Contributions

FT: Conceptualization, Writing - Review & Editing; FS, Writing - Review & Editing; WC, Writing - Review & Editing; RB: Conceptualization, Investigation, Writing – Review & Editing.

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