Open Access

REVIEW

Microbe-Mediated Abiotic Stress Tolerance in Rice (Oryza sativa L.) as a Strategy for Climate Change Adaptation

Syadza Ghaidha Ramadhan¹, Nia Rossiana^1,*, Dedat Prismantoro², Thomas Argyarich Jefferson¹, Malvin Albert¹, Irvan Satria¹, Mia Miranti¹, Mehrdad Alizadeh³, Kumudini Belur Satyan⁴, Febri Doni^1,*

1 Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Padjadjaran, Jatinangor, West Java, Indonesia
2 Doctorate Program in Biotechnology, Graduate School, Universitas Padjadjaran, Bandung, West Java, Indonesia
3 Department of Plant Pathology, Faculty of Agriculture, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
4 Department of Biotechnology and Genetics, School of Sciences, JAIN (Deemed-to-be University), Bengaluru, India

* Corresponding Authors: Nia Rossiana. Email: ; Febri Doni. Email:

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Plant-Environment Interactions under Climate Change)

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany 2026, 95(7), 2 https://doi.org/10.32604/phyton.2026.083440

Received 03 April 2026; Accepted 15 June 2026; Issue published 30 July 2026

Abstract

Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is central to global food security, yet its production systems remain highly vulnerable to environmental pressures. Climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of abiotic stresses, including drought, salinity, extreme temperatures, flooding, and heavy metal toxicity, which significantly reduce global rice productivity. Conventional strategies, including breeding and genetic engineering, have improved stress tolerance; however, their effectiveness is often constrained by long development timelines, complex genetic regulation, and limited performance under multiple concurrent stresses. In this context, plant-associated microorganisms have emerged as a sustainable and promising approach to enhancing rice plant resilience. This review synthesizes current knowledge on beneficial microbes such as plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), endophytes, and cyanobacteria and their roles in mediating abiotic stress tolerance in rice. These microorganisms enhance plant performance through diverse mechanisms, including modulation of phytohormone balance, improved nutrient acquisition, maintenance of ion homeostasis, activation of antioxidant defense systems, and induction of systemic tolerance. Furthermore, microbial interactions influence gene expression, signaling pathways, and epigenetic regulation, thereby strengthening plant adaptive responses to environmental stress. This review also highlights microbe-mediated mitigation of specific stresses and discusses key challenges, particularly inconsistent field performance and the complexity of plant microbiome interactions. Emerging approaches such as omics technologies, synthetic microbiome engineering, and artificial intelligence assisted microbial design offer new opportunities to improve the reliability and scalability of microbe-based strategies for climate resilient rice production.

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Keywords

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