Soil microbiota: a gold mine and a minefield for biotechnology

Biotechnology has been successfully applied to the management of soils and soil organisms with the aim of improving plant productivity and remediation of contaminated soils. The ability to isolate nucleic acids from soil enab les the detection of particular soil organisms. Plant pathogens are being q uantified in soil using specific DNA probes and farmers are able to use the information in crop management. Biological control of soil-borne diseases by soil bacteria and fungi is being practised. Genetic manipulation has led to the improvement of some commercial biological control agents such as Ag robacterium for the control of crown gall disease. The activities of both n aturally-occurring microbial communities and inoculants can be harnessed fo r the remediation of soil contaminated by organic pollutants. The future de velopment of biotechnology applied to soil organisms will continue to requi re contributions from a combination of scientific disciplines.