Plants live in constant interaction with a vast and diverse community of microbes, many of which play crucial roles in promoting plant health and productivity. Among these, beneficial microorganisms such as plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), mycorrhizal fungi, and endophytes have emerged as natural allies that not only enhance nutrient acquisition but also modulate intrinsic plant signaling pathways. These microbes are capable of triggering complex molecular dialogues that lead to systemic changes in plant physiology, including enhanced immune responses, stress tolerance, and developmental regulation.

The central theme of this Research Topic is to explore the mechanisms by which beneficial microbes activate plant signaling networks. Recent advances have revealed that microbe-derived signals, such as volatile organic compounds, lipopeptides, and small RNAs, can interact with specific plant receptors, initiating signaling cascades that involve phytohormonal pathways (e.g., jasmonic acid, salicylic acid, ethylene, auxin) and transcriptional reprogramming. However, many gaps remain in our understanding of these intricate processes.

This Research Topic aims to bring together novel insights and interdisciplinary approaches, from molecular biology and genomics to microbiome science and systems biology, to unravel how beneficial microbes influence plant signaling. Understanding these interactions at a mechanistic level will pave the way for developing microbe-based solutions for sustainable agriculture, offering alternatives to synthetic agrochemicals and enhancing crop resilience to climate stressors.

We invite original research, reviews, and perspectives that contribute to the following focus areas:

- What are the molecular signals and metabolites produced by beneficial microbes that trigger specific plant responses?

- How do plants perceive and transduce microbial signals through receptors and downstream signaling elements?

- In what ways do beneficial microbes modulate plant hormone biosynthesis and signaling networks?

- Can microbial priming lead to long-lasting systemic acquired resistance or stress memory in plants?

- How do multi-omics approaches (transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics) reveal plant system responses to beneficial microbes?

- What is the potential of synthetic microbial consortia to coordinate and enhance plant signaling pathways under real-world agricultural conditions?

- How does the surrounding soil and rhizosphere microbiome influence the consistency and strength of microbe-induced signaling?

Are you interested in contributing a manuscript to this Research Topic?

Beneficial Microbes as Triggers of Plant Signaling: Unlocking the Molecular Dialogues for Sustainable Crop Improvement