Beneficial Functions of Soil Microbiome for Sustainable Agriculture

Plant-associated microbes are key factors for the health of crops; in this sense, microbial inoculates represent a promising strategy for maintaining productivity in modern agricultural production systems, while sustainably adapting to adverse climatic factors, reducing pollution and decreasing use of toxic substances for the environment. Genomic and metagenomics tools have allowed a better understanding of how intensive agriculture has negative effects on the diversity and function of the plant microbiome, and in turn, how the management of microbial communities can mitigate some negative effects of crop modernization. Here we review the beneficial roles of plant-associated bacteria, and the symbiotic interactions between the microbiome and various economically important crops; we also discuss how this knowledge can provide strategies towards a more sustainable agricultural production.