Microbiology, Biotechnology and Genetics: Principles and Interconnections Vol. 1

Climate change poses substantial risks to agricultural productivity, food security and environmental stability, creating a need for sustainable approaches that can reduce greenhouse-gas emissions while supporting crop performance. This review examines the role of microorganisms in mitigating carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄) and nitrous oxide (N₂O) emissions and in strengthening plant responses to climate-related stresses. Microbial contributions to CO₂ mitigation include photosynthetic and non-photosynthetic carbon fixation, biomass formation, soil organic carbon stabilisation and the conversion of captured carbon into useful biomaterials. Methanotrophic bacteria and related microbial processes can limit CH₄ release through aerobic and anaerobic methane oxidation, while microbial biofertilisers and Azolla-associated systems can influence methane dynamics in flooded rice environments. N₂O mitigation is associated with denitrifying microorganisms, plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria, rhizobia and other microbes possessing functional genes involved in the reduction of N₂O to N₂. Beneficial microbial associations also support nutrient cycling and plant performance under drought, salinity and nutrient imbalance. Collectively, the evidence reviewed indicates that microbial processes have potential to contribute to climate-resilient agriculture through complementary greenhouse-gas mitigation and plant-support functions. Their practical application, however, should be evaluated under relevant soil, crop and environmental conditions to establish consistent mitigation performance, agronomic benefits and suitability for wider agricultural use.