Mechanisms and applications of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria: Current perspective

TLDR

Plant growth‑promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) are soil bacteria that enhance plant growth by supplying nutrients, modulating hormones, and suppressing pathogens, thereby improving crop health and reducing reliance on chemical fertilizers. This review examines current perspectives on the rhizosphere and PGPR, highlighting their roles and potential in agriculture. The authors detail PGPR mechanisms and present recent applications across diverse agro‑ecosystems under normal and stress conditions, outlining emerging trends for future research.

Abstract

Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria are the soil bacteria inhabiting around/on the root surface and are directly or indirectly involved in promoting plant growth and development via production and secretion of various regulatory chemicals in the vicinity of rhizosphere. Generally, plant growth promoting rhizobacteria facilitate the plant growth directly by either assisting in resource acquisition (nitrogen, phosphorus and essential minerals) or modulating plant hormone levels, or indirectly by decreasing the inhibitory effects of various pathogens on plant growth and development in the forms of biocontrol agents. Various studies have documented the increased health and productivity of different plant species by the application of plant growth promoting rhizobacteria under both normal and stressed conditions. The plant-beneficial rhizobacteria may decrease the global dependence on hazardous agricultural chemicals which destabilize the agro-ecosystems. This review accentuates the perception of the rhizosphere and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria under the current perspectives. Further, explicit outlooks on the different mechanisms of rhizobacteria mediated plant growth promotion have been described in detail with the recent development and research. Finally, the latest paradigms of applicability of these beneficial rhizobacteria in different agro-ecosystems have been presented comprehensively under both normal and stress conditions to highlight the recent trends with the aim to develop future insights.