A review of root exudates and rhizosphere microbiome for crop production

Increasing crop yields and ensuring food security is a major global challenge. In order to increase crop production, chemical fertilizers and pesticides are excessively used. However, the significance of root exudates is understudied. Beneficial interactions between plant and rhizosphere microbiome are critical for plant fitness and health. In this review, we discuss the application and progress of current research methods and technologies in terms of root exudates and rhizosphere microbiome. We summarize how root exudates promote plant access to nitrogen, phosphorus, and iron, and how root exudates strengthen plant immunity to cope with biotic stress by regulating the rhizosphere microbiome, and thereby reducing dependence on fertilizers and pesticides. Optimizing these interactions to increase plant nutrient uptake and resistance to biotic stresses offers one of the few untapped opportunities to confront sustainability issues in food security. To overcome the limitations of current research, combination of multi-omics, imaging technology together with synthetic communities has the potential to uncover the interaction mechanisms and to fill the knowledge gap for their applications in agriculture to achieve sustainable development.