Symbiotic and Pathogenic Interactions in the Rhizosphere

The rhizosphere is one of the most dynamic biological environments on Earth. Within this narrow zone surrounding plant roots, plants interact constantly with diverse communities of microorganisms including bacteria, fungi, oomycetes, and nematodes. These interactions range from mutually beneficial associations that enhance nutrient acquisition and stress tolerance to detrimental relationships that compromise plant health and agricultural productivity. Understanding the molecular and ecological processes governing these interactions is therefore central to plant biology and sustainable agriculture. This Focus Issue of Molecular Plant-Microbe Interactions brings together 14 research and review articles that explore the complex system of relationships that shape plant health in the rhizosphere. The studies span beneficial associations such as plant growth–promoting rhizobacteria and symbiotic microbes, as well as pathogenic interactions involving bacteria, fungi, oomycetes, and plant-parasitic nematodes. Collectively, these contributions highlight emerging concepts in microbial recognition, immune regulation, microbial community assembly, and effector-mediated host manipulation. By integrating perspectives from molecular genetics, functional genomics, microbiology, and ecology, this special issue highlights recent advances in our understanding of rhizosphere interactions and illustrates how these findings may inform new strategies for improving crop resilience and sustainable agricultural production. [Figure: see text] Copyright © 2026 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.