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Review
. 2024 Feb 20;13(5):571.
doi: 10.3390/plants13050571.

Interaction of Zinc Mineral Nutrition and Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria in Tropical Agricultural Systems: A Review

Arshad Jalal  1 , Enes Furlani Júnior  1 , Marcelo Carvalho Minhoto Teixeira Filho  1
Affiliations
Review

Interaction of Zinc Mineral Nutrition and Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria in Tropical Agricultural Systems: A Review

Arshad Jalal et al. Plants (Basel). .

Abstract

The relationship between zinc mineral nutrition and plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) is pivotal in enhancing agricultural productivity, especially in tropical regions characterized by diverse climatic conditions and soil variability. This review synthesizes and critically evaluates current knowledge regarding the synergistic interaction between zinc mineral nutrition and PGPB in tropical agricultural systems. Zinc is an essential and fundamental micronutrient for various physiological and biochemical processes in plants. Its deficiency affects plant growth and development, decreasing yields and nutritional quality. In tropical regions, where soil zinc availability is often limited or imbalanced, the PGPB, through different mechanisms such as Zn solubilization; siderophore production; and phytohormone synthesis, supports Zn uptake and assimilation, thereby facilitating the adverse effects of zinc deficiency in plants. This review outlines the impacts of Zn-PGPB interactions on plant growth, root architecture, and productivity in tropical agricultural systems. The positive relationship between PGPB and plants facilitates Zn uptake and improves nutrient use efficiency, overall crop performance, and agronomic biofortification. In addition, this review highlights the importance of considering indigenous PGPB strains for specific tropical agroecosystems, acknowledging their adaptability to local conditions and their potential in sustainable agricultural practices. It is concluded that Zn fertilizer and PGPBs have synergistic interactions and can offer promising avenues for sustainable agriculture, addressing nutritional deficiencies, improving crop resilience, and ensuring food security.

Keywords: Zn fertilization; Zn-use efficiencies; co-inoculation; inoculation; microbes-mediated biofortification.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Global distribution of human Zn deficiency and soil Zn deficiency, modified from Wessells and Brown [25], and Alloway [26], respectively.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Possible mechanism of Zn transportation and mobilization from soil to grain.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Agronomic biofortification and its outcomes in tropical field experiments. Photos are taken from the original experiment of the first author. The seeds were first inoculated with their respective inoculants, and sown with a drill sowing method; Zn fertilizer and nano Zn oxide were then also applied into the soil. All these approaches together improved crop growth, yield, and Zn concentration in the edible tissues.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Schematic representation of the most-used plant growth-promoting bacteria and soil zinc application in tropical regions for higher productivity of common beans.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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