microbiome-methods

Microbiome methods encompass the laboratory and computational techniques used to characterize the complex communities of bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms that inhabit plant tissues, roots, and the surrounding soil. Understanding these microbial communities is critical for plant science because the plant microbiome profoundly influences host health, nutrient acquisition, stress tolerance, and disease resistance. Advances in sequencing technologies and bioinformatics pipelines have made it possible to survey plant-associated microbial diversity at unprecedented resolution, opening new avenues for harnessing beneficial microbes to improve crop performance and ecosystem resilience.