72
potential of degraded lands, organic farming, sustainable phyto-bioremediation,
carbon sequestration, and biomass for bioenergy production (Abhilash et al. 2016b).
This book demonstrates that “global soils and agro-ecosystems are under threat”
because current agricultural practices such as intensification, extensification, excessive use of agrochemicals, land use patterns, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
have exerted tremendous pressure on agro-ecosystems, leading to environmental
instability. To consider environmental instability and improve the socioeconomic
status of marginal and resource-poor agricultural farmers and practitioners, for sustainable food, fiber, and fuel production and the restoration of degraded land, the
exploration of soil and plant and earth microbiome will provide multipurpose benefits to soil, water, air, and human health and environmental sustainability. In
approaches promoting the inoculation of plant growth-promoting bacteria and
fungi, microbial endophytes, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), and organic
amendments, sustainable agronomic practices could be utilized for increasing sustainable food production and agro-ecosystems services (Abhilash et al. 2016a). It
would be a better approach if the percentage of arable land area can be increased as
the result of degraded land restoration via advanced and sustainable phytobioremediation, which generates a huge bioeconomy with minimum environmental
risks.
Furthermore, microbiomes act as a hub for myriads of soil system processes and
services, the plant immune system and metabolism, various signatory molecules
such as microbial volatile organic compounds (mVOCs), genes, and microbe–
microbe, plant–plant, and plant–microbe interactions which thus determine plant
microbial community composition, plant health, and productivity. However, the
aforementioned processes and different plant spheres (spermosphere, rhizosphere,
phyllosphere, endosphere), which are supposed to be microbiologically active and
dynamic zones for microbial cross-talk, are still poorly explored in terms of microbiome structure and functions. So far, only rare metagenomic identification and
comparison of microbial communities among these plant spheres have been done,
to the best of our knowledge. The biosynthetic process of microbial VOCs, its
genetic regulation, and effect on other microbial partners from different plant
spheres remains unclear. In such a scenario, application of conventional, as well as
the next-generation technologies (metagenomics, proteomics, transcriptomics), for
studying the whole earth microbiome and its associated ecosystem services is an
urgent need. Unravelling the global microbiomes will surely open unexplored treasures for improving soil system and environmental sustainability and human wellbeing and will be helpful in achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs),
via attaining its targets: 1 (no poverty), 2 (zero hunger), 3 (good health and wellbeing), 6 (clean water and sanitation), 7 (affordable and clean energy, and 12
(responsible consumption and productions), 13 (climate action), 14 (life below
water), and 15 (life on land).
7 Conclusion and Future Perspectives
potential of degraded lands, organic farming, sustainable phyto-bioremediation,
carbon sequestration, and biomass for bioenergy production (Abhilash et al. 2016b).
This book demonstrates that “global soils and agro-ecosystems are under threat”
because current agricultural practices such as intensification, extensification, excessive use of agrochemicals, land use patterns, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
have exerted tremendous pressure on agro-ecosystems, leading to environmental
instability. To consider environmental instability and improve the socioeconomic
status of marginal and resource-poor agricultural farmers and practitioners, for sustainable food, fiber, and fuel production and the restoration of degraded land, the
exploration of soil and plant and earth microbiome will provide multipurpose benefits to soil, water, air, and human health and environmental sustainability. In
approaches promoting the inoculation of plant growth-promoting bacteria and
fungi, microbial endophytes, arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), and organic
amendments, sustainable agronomic practices could be utilized for increasing sustainable food production and agro-ecosystems services (Abhilash et al. 2016a). It
would be a better approach if the percentage of arable land area can be increased as
the result of degraded land restoration via advanced and sustainable phytobioremediation, which generates a huge bioeconomy with minimum environmental
risks.
Furthermore, microbiomes act as a hub for myriads of soil system processes and
services, the plant immune system and metabolism, various signatory molecules
such as microbial volatile organic compounds (mVOCs), genes, and microbe–
microbe, plant–plant, and plant–microbe interactions which thus determine plant
microbial community composition, plant health, and productivity. However, the
aforementioned processes and different plant spheres (spermosphere, rhizosphere,
phyllosphere, endosphere), which are supposed to be microbiologically active and
dynamic zones for microbial cross-talk, are still poorly explored in terms of microbiome structure and functions. So far, only rare metagenomic identification and
comparison of microbial communities among these plant spheres have been done,
to the best of our knowledge. The biosynthetic process of microbial VOCs, its
genetic regulation, and effect on other microbial partners from different plant
spheres remains unclear. In such a scenario, application of conventional, as well as
the next-generation technologies (metagenomics, proteomics, transcriptomics), for
studying the whole earth microbiome and its associated ecosystem services is an
urgent need. Unravelling the global microbiomes will surely open unexplored treasures for improving soil system and environmental sustainability and human wellbeing and will be helpful in achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs),
via attaining its targets: 1 (no poverty), 2 (zero hunger), 3 (good health and wellbeing), 6 (clean water and sanitation), 7 (affordable and clean energy, and 12
(responsible consumption and productions), 13 (climate action), 14 (life below
water), and 15 (life on land).
7 Conclusion and Future Perspectives