The XIX SEFIN Congress and 2nd Spanish-Portuguese Congress on Beneficial Plant-Microorganism Interactions (BeMiPlant)

Dear Colleagues,

Pluricellular organisms rely on interactions with a variety of microorganisms for their livelihood and survival. In plants, a wide range of microorganisms—like diazotrophic bacteria, mycorrhizal fungi, plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), and leaf and seed endophytes—play crucial roles in promoting growth through various beneficial processes. These effects include supplying essential forms of nitrogen and phosphorus, facilitating water uptake, producing plant hormones, increasing environmental stress tolerance, and protecting against phytopathogens. The benefits of such associations are evident not only in natural environments, where they aid in the restoration of degraded lands, but also in agricultural systems, where they can significantly enhance crop yields, thereby reducing the necessity for expensive and environmentally harmful agrochemicals. The Frankia– and rhizobium–legume nitrogen fixing symbioses and the association of mycorrhizal fungi with most land plants are among the most well-characterized, beneficial plant–microbe associations. However, additional fungal and bacterial members of plant microbiomes are gaining recognition for their plant growth improvements and are starting to steal the spotlight.

This Topic will include original research articles covering physiology, biochemistry, genetics, genomics, evolution, and agricultural applications of plant beneficial microorganisms and of their host partners and it is open to researchers who participated in the XIX SEFIN Congress and 2nd Spanish-Portuguese Congress on Beneficial Plant-Microorganism Interactions (BeMiPlant).

Prof. Dr. Jose Maria Vinardell González
Prof. Dr. Beatriz Ramos Solano
Prof. Dr. Juan Sanjuán
Dr. Isabel V. Castro
Topic Editors