Role of microbial inoculants as bio fertilizers for improving crop productivity: A review

Durre Shahwar; Zeenat Mushtaq; Humira Mushtaq; Abdulaziz A Alqarawi; Younghoon Park; Thobayet S Alshahrani; Shahla Faizan

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e16134

Role of microbial inoculants as bio fertilizers for improving crop productivity: A review

Heliyon. 2023 May 16;9(6):e16134. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e16134. eCollection 2023 Jun.

Authors

Durre Shahwar^{1

2}, Zeenat Mushtaq³, Humira Mushtaq⁴, Abdulaziz A Alqarawi⁵, Younghoon Park², Thobayet S Alshahrani⁵, Shahla Faizan³

Affiliations

¹ Genetics and Molecular Biology Section, Department of Botany, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, U.P., India.
² Plant Genomics and Molecular Biology Laboratory, Department of Horticultural Bioscience, Pusan National University, Miryang, 50463, South Korea.
³ Environmental Physiology Laboratory, Department of Botany, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh, 202002, India.
⁴ Research and Training Center on Pollinators and Pollination Management Section, Division of Entomology, SKAUST, Kashmir, 190025, India.
⁵ Department of Plant Production, College of Food & Agricultural Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia.

Abstract

The world's population is increasing and is anticipated to spread 10 billion by 2050, and the issue of food security is becoming a global concern. To maintain global food security, it is essential to increase crop productivity under changing climatic conditions. Conventional agricultural practices frequently use artificial/chemical fertilizers to enhance crop productivity, but these have numerous negative effects on the environment and people's health. To address these issues, researchers have been concentrating on substitute crop fertilization methods for many years, and biofertilizers as a crucial part of agricultural practices are quickly gaining popularity all over the globe. Biofertilizers are living formulations made of indigenous plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) which are substantial, environment-friendly, and economical biofertilizers for amassing crop productivity by enhancing plant development either directly or indirectly, and are the renewable source of plant nutrients and sustainable agronomy. The review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current knowledge on microbial inoculants as biofertilizers, including their types, mechanisms of action, effects on crop productivity, challenges, and limitations associated with the use of microbial inoculants. In this review, we focused on the application of biofertilizers to agricultural fields in plant growth development by performing several activities like nitrogen fixation, siderophore production, phytohormone production, nutrient solubilization, and facilitating easy uptake by crop plants. Further, we discussed the indirect mechanism of PGPRs, in developing induced system resistance against pest and diseases, and as a biocontrol agent for phytopathogens. This review article presents a brief outline of the ideas and uses of microbial inoculants in improving crop productivity as well as a discussion of the challenges and limitations to use microbial inoculants.

Keywords: Biofertilizers; Crop productivity; Microbial inoculants; Nitrogen fixation; Nutrient solubilization; Phytohormones.

Publication types

Review