Multifaceted Impacts of Plant-Beneficial Pseudomonas spp. in Managing Various Plant Diseases and Crop Yield Improvement

Abstract

The modern agricultural system has issues with the reduction of agricultural productivity due to a wide range of abiotic and biotic stresses. It is also expected that in the future the entire world population may rapidly increase and will surely demand more food. Farmers now utilize a massive quantity of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides for disease management and to increase food production. These synthetic fertilizers badly affect the environment, the texture of the soil, plant productivity, and human health. However, agricultural safety and sustainability depend on an ecofriendly and inexpensive biological application. In contrast to synthetic fertilizers, soil inoculation with plant-growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) is one of the excellent alternative options. In this regard, we focused on the best PGPR genera, Pseudomonas, which exists in the rhizosphere as well as inside the plant’s body and plays a role in sustainable agriculture. Many Pseudomonas spp. control plant pathogens and play an effective role in disease management through direct and indirect mechanisms. Pseudomonas spp. fix the amount of atmospheric nitrogen, solubilize phosphorus and potassium, and also produce phytohormones, lytic enzymes, volatile organic compounds, antibiotics, and secondary metabolites during stress conditions. These compounds stimulate plant growth by inducing systemic resistance and by inhibiting the growth of pathogens. Furthermore, pseudomonads also protect plants during different stress conditions like heavy metal pollution, osmosis, temperature, oxidative stress, etc. Now, several Pseudomonas-based commercial biological control products have been promoted and marketed, but there are a few limitations that hinder the development of this technology for extensive usage in agricultural systems. The variability among the members of Pseudomonas spp. draws attention to the huge research interest in this genus. There is a need to explore the potential of native Pseudomonas spp. as biocontrol agents and to use them in biopesticide development to support sustainable agriculture.