REVIEW article
Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Microbe and Virus Interactions with Plants
This article is part of the Research TopicPlant Mineral Microbe Interactions, Vol IIView all 15 articles
Harnessing endophytic fungi for sustainable agriculture: ecological roles, mechanisms, and future prospects
Provisionally accepted
Changliang Du1
Qian Chen2
Dayong Cui1
Muhannad Zahid-Mumtaz2,3Yonglan Chang1Ning Yang1Liwen Wang1Jie Gao1
Feng Weiyi1Junke Zhu1*- 1Qilu Normal University, Jinan, China
- 2Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China
- 3The University of Lahore, Lahore, Pakistan
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Endophytic fungi are asymptomatic microorganisms that inhabit plant tissues and play pivotal roles in regulating crop growth under field conditions. This review first provides an overview of their taxonomy and ecological functions, emphasizing natural diversity and distribution, then systematically summarizes their core mechanisms: enhancing nutrient uptake, regulating phytohormone biosynthesis, promoting root development, and boosting resistance to abiotic stresses (e.g., drought, salinity). We further discuss the agricultural potential and existing challenges, including stability, persistence, and compatibility with current farming practices. Future research directions are outlined to advance sustainable agriculture, focusing on dissecting molecular interactions between endophytic fungi and crops, optimizing application techniques, and evaluating long-term ecological impacts. This work provides a comprehensive reference for agricultural scientists, ecologists, and researchers to facilitate the practical application of endophytic fungi, encouraging further research and practical applications in this field.
Keywords: agricultural sustainability, Crop growth, endophytic fungi, nutrient uptake, Stress Tolerance
Received: 21 Sep 2025; Accepted: 09 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 Du, Chen, Cui, Zahid-Mumtaz, Chang, Yang, Wang, Gao, Weiyi and Zhu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Junke Zhu
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.