Plant-Microbiome Systems Under Climate Stress: From Molecular Mechanisms to Ecosystem Resilience

The field of plant-microbiome interactions is emerging as a pivotal area in understanding how plants adapt to the accelerating challenges posed by climate change. As our global environment undergoes significant shifts, including heightened temperatures, increased salinity, and altered precipitation patterns, plants are forced to contend with multiple, simultaneous stressors. Microbial communities associated with plants have been shown to support physiological adaptation, disease resistance, and holistic plant health. However, recent evidence reveals that while molecular and ecological research have both advanced rapidly, integration between detailed genetic or biochemical insights and larger-scale ecological or ecosystem outcomes remains limited. This lack of connectivity inhibits the development of comprehensive predictive frameworks and practical solutions essential for sustainable crop production and ecological stability.Current studies have mapped individual molecular pathways, catalogued microbial diversity, and engineered microbial consortia with promising results in controlled settings. Yet, major questions linger regarding how the molecular interplay between plants and their associated microbes translates into stability and resilience at community and ecosystem levels, especially under real-world, fluctuating climate conditions. Fragmentation persists, with laboratory breakthroughs often failing to scale up to complex field environments, and with pure ecological approaches overlooking underlying molecular mechanisms. Thus, there is a critical need to bridge insights across biological scales, developing integrative methods that foster a systemic understanding and inform adaptation strategies.This Research Topic aims to unify research across molecular, physiological, ecological, and applied domains to reveal the principles governing plant-microbiome networks under climate stress. The objective is to foster interdisciplinary discussion and collaboration, promoting approaches that connect multi-omics data, systems biology, ecological models, and field-based research. By leveraging these diverse perspectives, the Topic seeks to create new conceptual and practical frameworks that enable robust prediction, strategic microbiome engineering, and effective implementation of plant-microbiome innovations in agriculture and ecosystem restoration. The ultimate goal is to support climate-resilient agriculture and sustainable ecosystem management through translational science and scalable interventions.The boundaries of this Research Topic span the continuum from molecular details to ecosystem functions, while focusing on interactions, adaptations, and applications in the context of ongoing and predicted climate changes. Submissions are especially encouraged if they employ integrative, interdisciplinary, or translational approaches. To gather further insights, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:- Mechanisms of plant-microbe interaction under abiotic and biotic climate stresses- Assembly, adaptation, and function of microbiomes in diverse environments- Multi-omics and systems biology investigations of plant-microbiome networks- The utility of microbiome engineering, synthetic communities, and bioinoculants- Translational efforts to move discoveries from laboratory to field- Impacts on soil health, nutrient cycles, carbon dynamics, and broader ecosystem processes- Modeling, prediction, and forecasting plant-microbiome system responses Topic editors: Suman Singh, Abdul Wahab Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/80077/plant-microbiome-systems-under-climate-stress-from-molecular-mechanisms-to-ecosystem-resilience