Natural variation of the holobiont for sustainable agroecosystems

Author(s)
Wolfram Weckwerth, Palak Chaturvedi, Arindam Ghatak, Melina Kerou, Vanika Garg, Abhishek Bohra, Guntur V Subbarao, Lisa Stein, Christa Schleper, Rajeev K Varshney, Sieglinde Snapp
Abstract

Plant evolution is largely driven by plant-microbe interactions, yet the ecology of the plant holobiont is not well understood at a molecular level. However, these relationships hold diverse benefits for sustainable agriculture as nature-based solutions (NbS). We propose a workflow to enhance understanding of natural variation in the plant-soil microbiome holobiont, addressing key challenges like growth promotion, stress resilience, nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), biological nitrification inhibition (BNI), healthy soils, and improving fertilization practices towards a more natural agroecosystem. We discuss a panome-wide association study (PWAS) approach to discover and incorporate novel genetic diversity from exotic germplasm into breeding populations. Ultimately, understanding natural variation of the holobiont in agroecosystems will contribute to the development of novel climate-resilient crop varieties for food security.

Organisation(s)
Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem Science
External organisation(s)
Murdoch University, ICAR-Indian Institute of Pulses Research (IIPR), Kanpur, India., Crop, Livestock, and Environment Division, JIRCAS, 1-1 Ohwashi, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8686, Japan., University of Alberta, Sustainable Agrifood Systems, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), El Batan, Mexico; Center for Global Change and Earth Observations, Department Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences, Michigan State University, MI, USA.
Journal
Trends in Plant Science
ISSN
1360-1385
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tplants.2025.05.006
Publication date
06-2025
Peer reviewed
Yes
Austrian Fields of Science 2012
106022 Microbiology
Sustainable Development Goals
SDG 2 - Zero Hunger
Portal url
https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/2c535e39-7e1a-4a38-bd32-40711eaf8469