Microbiome engineering for sustainable agriculture: using synthetic biology to enhance nitrogen metabolism in plant-associated microbes

Plants benefit from symbiotic relationships with their microbiomes. Modifying these microbiomes to further promote plant growth and improve stress tolerance in crops is a promising strategy. However, such efforts have had limited success, perhaps because the original microbiomes quickly re-establish. Since the complex biological networks involved are little understood, progress through conventional means is time-consuming. Synthetic biology, with its practical successes in multiple industries, could speed up this research considerably. Some fascinating candidates for production by synthetic microbiomes are organic nitrogen metabolites and related pyridoxal-5???-phosphate-dependent enzymes, which have pivotal roles in microbe???microbe and plant???microbe interactions. This review summarizes recent studies of these metabolites and enzymes and discusses prospective synthetic biology platforms for sustainable agriculture.

Automated summary

Plants benefit from symbiotic relationships with their microbiomes, but efforts to modify these microbiomes for enhanced plant growth and stress tolerance have had limited success. Synthetic biology, with its practical successes in other industries, could accelerate research in this area and hold promise for sustainable agriculture.