Rhizotrophs: Plant Growth Promotion to Bioremediation

This book describes the contributions of rhizotrophs - microbes associated with the parts of plants below ground - in sustainable agriculture. It covers a broad range of aspects, from plant growth promotion to bioremediation. It highlights the role of bacteria, actinomycetes, mycorrhizal fungi, and most interestingly protists, in the sustainability of agriculture. Further, it addresses in detail the involvement of quorum sensing signals, and the role of hydrolytic enzymes and bacteriocin in combating the phytopathogen.

The book sheds light on the interaction of rhizotrophs in rhizosphere and how these microbes support plants growing under adverse stress conditions such as saline, drought or heavy-metals contamination. Challenges faced in the field application of these microbes, strategies for modifying the rhizosphere to improve crop yield, and the latest advances in rhizobial bioformulations are also discussed. Overall, the book provides comprehensive information on how various microbes can be used to improve the sustainability of agriculture without disturbing the environment.

Dr Samina Mehnaz, PhD Microbiology, is a Professor and Chairperson of Department of Biological Sciences, Forman Christian College (A Chartered University), Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan. She is a researcher, in the field of Microbiology since 1991. Her specific area of interest is rhizosphere microbiology, more specifically PGPRs, bioformulations and microbial metabolites. She has been an Alexander von Humboldt (AvH) Fellow (Germany), National Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) Fellow (Canada), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Fellow (Belgium) and a Post Doctorate Fellow (USA). She has 39 research papers published in international journals and four book chapters (as a single author) published by Springer. She is Editor of a book, 'Bioformutaions: for sustainable agriculture', recently published by Springer, India. She is editor of an international journal, 'Archives of Phytopathology and Plant Protection' (Taylor & Francis, UK). She has reviewed more than 65 research articles for more than 30 International journals and a regular reviewer for 'Microbial Ecology' (Springer) and 'International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology' (SGM, UK). She has been a winner of Research Productivity Award (RPA) from 2010 to 2014, awarded by Pakistan Council of Science and Technology (PCST); and a Productive Scientist of Pakistan since 2006, as listed by PCST. In January 2016, She was appointed as 'Humboldt Ambassador Scientist' of Pakistan (A representative of Alexander von Humboldt (AvH) Foundation, Germany) by President of AvH Foundation; and currently serving at this position.