Plant Microbiome and Biological Control: Emerging Trends and Applications

This book offers a comprehensive guide to discovering, assessing, and utilizing consortia of beneficial microbes for crop protection and enhanced crop production in the context of climate change. It provides deep insights into the functional roles of the rhizomicrobiome, including AMF, endophytes, PGPRs, and the phyllomicrobiome, as well as the microbiomes of different plant parts such as seeds, fruits, and stems, in promoting plant growth, development, and the biocontrol of pests and pathogens in a sustainable manner.

The book also presents the latest updates on molecular biology techniques, genetic engineering, biotechnological tools, and metagenomics, which are widely used for analyzing plant-pathogen interactions and microbial identification. It will be especially valuable for students and faculty involved in the study and teaching of plant–microbe interactions, as well as researchers working on sustainable methods for plant disease management. With cutting-edge research from leading experts, this book aims to contribute to the development of an eco-friendly, sustainable agricultural system.

Dr. Piyush Mathur is presently working as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Botany, Institute of Science, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India. He has been teaching for the past 6 years and has taught both at the undergraduate and postgraduate level. He has done his Ph.D. in Botany with a specialization in Mycology and Plant Pathology from Delhi University. Presently, he is supervising four Ph. D. research scholars who are working on microbial diversity, bioprospecting, and plant disease management. He has published quite a number of articles and papers in well-known international journals of good repute. He has also contributed articles as book chapters in International and National books. He is serving as a member of editorial board of BMC Plant Biology (Taylor and Francis).  He has previously edited three books with Springer and is working on other books too. Dr. Mathur is an active member of the Society of Rapeseed Mustard Research (SRMR), Bharatpur, and Delhi University Botanical Society (DUBS) Delhi, India and Indian Phytopathological Society, New Delhi, India.

Dr. Swarnendu Roy is presently working as an Assistant Professor at the University of North Bengal, Siliguri, India. He has more than 12 years of teaching experience. His doctoral thesis involved understanding the mechanism of salinity stress tolerance in grasses. He has published more than 35 articles in reputed journals with high impact factors like Water Research, Scientific Reports, Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, and Physiologia Plantarum. He has recently edited a book entitled Plant Stress: Challenges and Management in the New Decade, published by Springer and also published several book chapters in edited volumes. He is presently supervising 4 Ph. D. research scholars who are working on stress management in plants by engineered nanoparticles, synthesis of starch-based biofilms and edible coatings. He received International Travel Support (ITS) from DST, Government of India to present his research paper at International Conference on Integrative Plant Physiology at Sitges, Spain. He is a life member of prestigious societies like The Indian Science Congress Association, Association of Food Scientists and Technologists (India).