Fungal Contributions to Sustainable Agriculture and the Challenges in Biodiversity Conservation

Food security remains a pressing global concern, exacerbated by the challenges posed by an expanding world population and the impacts of climate change. This paper emphasizes the pivotal yet often overlooked role of fungi in diverse ecosystems, particularly in the context of agriculture. Fungi serve as crucial agents in sustainable agricultural practices, functioning as biofertilizers, biopesticides, and inducers of abiotic stress tolerance. Arbuscular mycorrhiza (AM) fungi, dark septate endophytes (DSE), endophytic fungi (EF), and plant growth-promoting fungi (PGPF) stand out as essential biofertilizers. Beyond their growth-promoting abilities, these fungi also confer resistance against pathogens and pests, as well as tolerance to various environmental stressors. In tandem with these agricultural benefits, biocontrol fungi present a promising eco-friendly approach for managing pests and diseases. Various fungal species have demonstrated effectiveness in suppressing insects, nematodes, and other harmful organisms. Moreover, bioherbicides derived from fungal species offer a natural solution for controlling weeds detrimental to agricultural crop production.The assessment of global fungal biodiversity and its conservation remains a longstanding challenge in the field of biology. While estimates range from ۱.۵ to ۱۳.۲ million fungal species, only a small fraction (۱.۲–۱۰.۳%) have been formally described to date. Historically, fungi received inadequate attention in conservation efforts due to factors such as insufficient awareness of their diversity, limited demographic and ecological data, and challenges associated with sampling and species identification. However, the emergence of Conservation Mycology as a dedicated subfield, coupled with advancements in molecular genetics and high-throughput sequencing technologies, has revolutionized our understanding of fungal diversity, function, and biogeography. Nevertheless, two significant hurdles persist: the potential detachment of mycologists from community analysis in the era of high-throughput sequencing, and the taxonomic ambiguity of many sequences generated. Addressing these challenges requires the standardization of the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (ICN) and a refinement of the criteria for acceptable type-specimens.Linking genetic diversity to functional diversity represents a paramount challenge in contemporary mycological research. Genome sequencing has illuminated fungal function by predicting gene function and revealing the phylogenetic history of vital proteins, domains, and gene families. Ecosystem-level approaches offer a promising avenue for fungal conservation, capitalizing on their extensive interconnectivity with other biota through food webs and symbiotic relationships. While species and ecosystem conservation remain foundational to biodiversity preservation, safeguarding biological collections, ecological metadata, and genetic/genomic data assumes increasing importance. Herbaria, Fungaria, and culture collections are instrumental in cataloguing fungal diversity, generating knowledge, and mapping fungal distribution over time. Progress in public awareness and policy development pertaining to fungal biodiversity and ecological significance must persist, and conservation mycologists will play a leading role in integrating fungal management into existing conservation practices. This comprehensive overview underscores the vital contributions of fungi to sustainable agriculture and conservation, and calls for concerted efforts in research, policy, and practice to harness their full potential.

کلیدواژه ها:

Bioinoculants ، Crop productivity ، Ecosystem function ، Integrative taxonomy ، Plant protection ، Soil health ، Species diversity