Exopolysaccharides from agriculturally important microorganisms: Conferring soil nutrient status and plant health

A wide variety of microorganisms secretes extracellular polymeric substances or commonly known as exopolysaccharides (EPS), which have been studied to influence plant growth via various mechanisms. EPS-producing microorganisms have been found to have positive effects on plant health such as by facilitating nutrient entrapment in the soil, or by improving soil quality, especially by helping in mitigating various abiotic stress conditions. The various types of microbial polysaccharides allow for the compartmentalization of the microbial community enabling them to endure undressing stress conditions. With the growing population, there is a constant need for developing sustainable agriculture where we could use various PGPR to help the plant cope with various stress conditions and simultaneously enhance the crop yield. These polysaccharides have also found application in various sectors, especially in the biomedical fields, manifesting their potential to act as antitumor drugs, play a significant role in immune evasion, and reveal various therapeutic potentials. These constitute high levels of bioactive polysaccharides which possess a wide range of implementation starting from industrial applications to novel food applications. In this current review, we aim at presenting a comprehensive study of how these microbial extracellular polymeric substances influence agricultural productivity along with their other commercial applications.