Management of phyto-parasitic nematodes using bacteria and fungi and their consortia as biocontrol agents

Abstract

Phyto-parasitic nematodes are the main risks to the agroecosystem that cause agricultural output to decline in a variety of crops around the world. An intriguing and promising substitute for the chemical practice of shielding plants against the growing hazards of these pathogens lies in biological plant protection. This approach focuses on using biological control agents (BCAs) using microbial-based biocontrol techniques to inhibit the growth of phytopathogens responsible for plant diseases. Microbial BCAs interact with pathogens or plant hosts to increase their resistance, which may be a useful way to control the development of agricultural diseases. However, in comparison to a single strain, microbial consortia with distinct modes of action might exhibit a multifunctional and more resilient effect as a biocontrol. The market is currently offering only a small number of microbial consortia-based biocontrol interventions as these products are still in their infancy of development and demand substantial research to avert phyto-parasitic nematodes. The employment of BCAs to combat phytopathogens will become an increasingly vital component of sustainable agriculture in the future. Thus, this article provides a thorough review of the current status of bacteria and fungi and their microbial consortia-based biocontrol for plant protection research through a biological manner considering upcoming and advanced technological developments. Commercialization of biocontrol products and associated challenges and ways to overcome these hurdles are also discussed as future perspectives. The present review also summarizes the latest research done (particularly the past five years' data) on the activity of BCAs bacteria, fungi and their consortium against various plant pathogens with their enormous benefits for upgrading plant growth and defense mechanisms. The present review efficiently contributes to sustainable development goal 2, which is concerned with food security and sustainable agriculture.