Protective holobiome promotes strawberry tolerance of biotic stresses

TL;DR

This paper explores how the strawberry's microbiome can be used to improve its resistance to pests and diseases, reducing the need for harmful chemicals.

Contribution

The paper reviews recent advances in understanding the strawberry holobiome and proposes future strategies for microbiome-based plant protection.

Findings

Cultivar-specific microbial consortia can suppress plant disease and enhance stress tolerance.

Synthetic microbial communities (SynComs) offer a promising approach for targeted microbiome augmentation.

AI-driven community design and multi-omics analysis are suggested for improving microbiome engineering.

Abstract

The commercial cultivation of strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa) is increasingly challenged by biotic stresses such as plant pathogens and insect pests, while climate change exacerbates abiotic stresses. Reliance on chemical fumigants and broad-spectrum pesticides presents risks to human health, environmental quality, and microbial diversity. The strawberry holobiome, defined as the integrated community of plant-associated microorganisms that inhabit the rhizosphere, phyllosphere, endosphere, and fruit surface, is emerging as a key determinant of plant health and productivity. Recent metagenomic and metabolomic studies have identified cultivar-specific microbial consortia that suppress plant disease, enhance stress tolerance via induced systemic resistance, and modulate fruit quality. The engineering of synthetic microbial communities (SynComs) offers a targeted approach to microbiome augmentation, but the lack of high-resolution functional data hinders the development of effective SynComs, especially in hydroponic and substrate culture systems. This review synthesizes recent advances in holobiome profiling, evaluates microbial biocontrol strategies against major pathogens, and outlines future directions, including AI (artificial intelligence)-driven community design, integrated multi-omics analysis, and microbiome-assisted breeding. Addressing these gaps will enable precision management of the strawberry microbiome to sustain yield, quality, and resilience under dynamic environmental conditions.

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