Paper Details

PJB-2025-357

Evaluating microbial biostimulants under abiotic stressors in plants

 

Khyreyah J. Alfifi
Abstract

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Abiotic stressors (AS), particularly heat, drought, and salinity have caused notable decreases in crop yield and nutritional quality under changing climatic scenarios. These AS negatively impact the growth of plants, metabolism, and economic yield by seriously disrupting several vital biochemical, physiological, and molecular processes. Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus (AMF), endophytes, and certain microalgae are examples of microbial biostimulants, representing innovative approaches to enhance crop resistance to AS.  The PGPR work through a variety of processes, including phytohormone regulation, increased nutritional acquisition, osmotic adjustment, antioxidant induction, ion homeostasis, ACC-deaminase activity, and the formation of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and exopolysaccharides (EPS). This review covers recent advances in microbial biostimulants, including their stress-specific ameliorative effects, challenges in formulation and application, and future research directions needed for their wide-scale application of microbial biostimulants to boost yield and quality of field crops. Future research should concentrate on how the PGPR mediates AS by promoting the biosynthesis of phytohormones such as gibberellins, indole-3-acetic acid, cytokinins, and abscisic acid, as well as enhancing nutrient acquisition.

To Cite this article: Alfifi, K.J. 2026. Evaluating microbial biostimulants under abiotic stressors in plants. Pak. J. Bot., 58(5): DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.30848/PJB2026-5(15)  
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