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The Potential of Facultative Predatory Actinomycetota spp. and Prospects in Agricultural Sustainability

Summary

This research explores how certain beneficial soil bacteria can act as natural predators to control harmful plant diseases and toxic algal blooms. These bacteria offer an environmentally friendly alternative to chemical pesticides in agriculture. Impacts on everyday life: – Provides safer and more sustainable ways to protect food crops from diseases – Reduces the need for chemical pesticides in agriculture – Helps maintain cleaner water systems by controlling toxic algal blooms – Supports development of more environmentally friendly farming practices – Could lead to safer food production with fewer chemical residues

Background

Actinomycetota bacteria have been extensively studied as a source of antibiotics and secondary metabolites. While they are known to promote plant growth and control plant pathogens, their facultative predatory abilities are not well understood. The mechanisms underlying predation behavior in these bacteria remain poorly characterized despite their potential applications.

Objective

The study aimed to: 1) critically review the facultative predatory mechanisms of bacteria and Actinomycetota, 2) discuss the various small molecules synthesized during their opportunistic predatory lifestyle stage, and 3) explore the potential beneficial use of Actinomycetota-synthesized small molecules for developing biocontrol agents for plant disease suppression and protection.

Results

The review found that epibiotic predation (requiring cell-to-cell contact) is the dominant mode of predation among Actinomycetota, followed by wolfpack group attacks. Predatory Actinomycetota produce various secondary metabolites and enzymes during predation, though specific compounds remain largely uncharacterized. The bacteria show promise as biocontrol agents against plant pathogens and cyanobacterial blooms.

Conclusion

Predatory Actinomycetota represent a promising eco-friendly tool for agricultural sustainability, particularly as biocontrol agents. However, more research is needed to fully understand predation mechanisms, identify compounds produced during predation, and evaluate large-scale applications. The approach could provide sustainable solutions for controlling plant pathogens and harmful cyanobacterial blooms.
  • Published in:Frontiers in Microbiology,
  • Study Type:Review,
  • Source: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.1081815
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