A Review on the Role of Endophytes and Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria in Mitigating Heat Stress in Plants

Abstract

Among abiotic stresses, heat stress is described as one of the major limiting factors of crop growth worldwide, as high temperatures elicit a series of physiological, molecular, and biochemical cascade events that ultimately result in reduced crop yield. There is growing interest among researchers in the use of beneficial microorganisms. Intricate and highly complex interactions between plants and microbes result in the alleviation of heat stress. Plant–microbe interactions are mediated by the production of phytohormones, siderophores, gene expression, osmolytes, and volatile compounds in plants. Their interaction improves antioxidant activity and accumulation of compatible osmolytes such as proline, glycine betaine, soluble sugar, and trehalose, and enriches the nutrient status of stressed plants. Therefore, this review aims to discuss the heat response of plants and to understand the mechanisms of microbe-mediated stress alleviation on a physio-molecular basis. This review indicates that microbes have a great potential to enhance the protection of plants from heat stress and enhance plant growth and yield. Owing to the metabolic diversity of microorganisms, they can be useful in mitigating heat stress in crop plants. In this regard, microorganisms do not present new threats to ecological systems. Overall, it is expected that continued research on microbe-mediated heat stress tolerance in plants will enable this technology to be used as an ecofriendly tool for sustainable agronomy.