Endophytic Fungi and Beneficial Microbes for Sustainable Crop Resilience

Dear Colleagues,

Global climate change, soil degradation, and excessive use of agrochemicals pose severe threats to crop productivity and food security, thereby creating an urgent need to explore eco-friendly strategies—such as harnessing endophytic fungi and beneficial microbes—to sustainably enhance crop resilience. Against this backdrop, this Special Issue aims to consolidate research on the role of these microorganisms in boosting crop resilience, with its scope covering microbial symbiosis mechanisms, stress tolerance (to drought, salinity, and pathogens), soil health improvement, and their applications in sustainable agriculture. Notably, the study of microbe-crop interactions dates back decades: early research focused on rhizobial nitrogen fixation and mycorrhizal nutrient uptake, and as sustainable agriculture gained global traction, the field has expanded to investigate the multifunctional roles of endophytic fungi in enhancing crop resilience. Now, current cutting-edge research includes deciphering microbial metabolic pathways that regulate crop stress responses, developing microbe-based biofertilizers and biopesticides, and applying omics technologies (genomics, metabolomics) to unravel the complex microbe-crop-soil interactions.

We welcome original research articles, reviews, and short communications that address microbial mechanisms for crop resilience, field validation of microbial products, and interdisciplinary studies linking microbial ecology to agricultural practice.

Dr. Yi Cheng
Prof. Dr. Xiaofeng Su
Guest Editors

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