Allelopathy as a source of bioherbicides: challenges and prospects for sustainable agriculture

Abstract

The sustainable management of the environment and crop production in modern agriculture involves dealing with challenges from climate change, environmental pollution, depletion of natural resources, as well as pressure to cope with dependence on agricultural inputs. Balancing crop productivity with environmental sustainability is one of the main challenges for agriculture worldwide. The emergence of weeds resistant to synthetic herbicides generates huge economic losses, so unconventional weed control strategies, especially those based on ecological principles, are very much needed in modern agriculture. Incorporating a natural eco-friendly approach—allelopathy—as a tool in an integrated weed control plan by growing specific crops or spraying fields with extracts containing allelopathic compounds can significantly reduce the use of herbicides. Allelopathy is considered a multi-dimensional phenomenon occurring constantly in natural and anthropogenic ecosystems, by which one organism produces biochemicals that influence the growth, survival, development, and reproduction of other organisms. The objective of this systematic literature review is to present a comprehensive overview of allelopathy, define this phenomenon, and classify allelochemicals. This paper also discusses and highlights recent advances, ongoing research, and prospects on plant allelopathy management practices applied in agriculture, and the underlying allelopathic mechanisms. The review suggested the holistic view of some allelochemicals as an ecological approach to integrated weed control and is an important contribution to future research directions of multidisciplinary programs, chemoinformatic tools, and novel biotechnology methods to plant breeding.

Nature-Based Herbicides and Micro-/Nanotechnology Fostering Sustainable Agriculture

“…Plants can defend themselves against various biotic and abiotic factors throughout their development process (Figure ). These defensive metabolites affect the plant’s interaction with the surrounding environment, including suppressing competing plant species, regulating the soil microbiota community, establishing beneficial symbioses, and controlling herbivore and pathogen attacks. , As such, allelochemicals have attracted interest and have been widely studied in agricultural management, including weed control …”

“…Scheme of crop–weed interaction, including factors of constituting and inhibiting allelopathy. The image is reprinted with permission from ref . Copyright 2023 Springer under Creative Commons license ().…”

“…These defensive metabolites affect the plant's interaction with the surrounding environment, including suppressing competing plant species, regulating the soil microbiota community, establishing beneficial symbioses, and controlling herbivore and pathogen attacks. 18,20 As such, allelochemicals have attracted interest and have been widely studied in agricultural management, including weed control. 21 According to Macias et al, allelochemicals used for weed control can be divided according to their chemistry: (1) phenolic compounds, including simple phenolics, flavonoids, coumarins, and quinones; (2) terpenoids, such as monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, diterpenes, triterpenes, and steroids; and (3) allelochemicals containing a nitrogen atom, such as alkaloids, nonprotein amino acids, benzoxazinoids, and cyanogenic glycosides.…”

Sesquiterpene Lactones Isolated from Centaurea cineraria L. subsp. cineraria Inhibit the Radicle Growth of Broomrape Weeds

“…Plants are able to produce a wide range of secondary metabolites in response to both biotic and non-biotic stresses, as well as for allelopathic interactions. The biological phenomenon of allelopathy is the direct or indirect effect of chemicals released by one organism on the physiological processes of other neighboring organisms [ 1 ]. These allelochemicals can be directly used or serve as nature-inspired models for the development of new herbicides as alternatives to synthetic pesticides [ 2 ].…”

Persistence of Root Exudates of Sorghum bicolor and Solidago canadensis: Impacts on Invasive and Native Species

“…In test plant species, caffeic acid, in particular, inhibits seed germination, root elongation, and seedling development. Its possible modes of action include disruption of cell division, mitochondrial respiration, plasma membrane integrity, and hormonal signaling pathways [ 46 , 47 ]. Solidago canadensis leaf and root extracts reduced conifer seed germination and seedling growth in controlled trials [ 7 , 48 , 49 ].…”