Recent Advances and Developments in Bacterial Endophytes Identification and Application: A 20-Year Landscape Review

Bacterial endophytes are a diverse group of microorganisms that reside within tissues of plants without causing any harm and have gained significant attention due to their role in plant growth promotion, stress tolerance and disease resistance. Inter-actions between plant tissues and bacterial endophytes are complex and dynamic, in that understanding their colonization mechanisms remains crucial. Advances in ge-nomic and molecular techniques has provided insights into these interactions, but there is still much to explore. The diversity of these microorganisms leads to different functions among strains, making their isolation and characterization challenging. Therefore, researchers utilize a range of culture-independent molecular techniques and high-throughput sequencing technologies to elucidate the diversity of bacterial endophytes. Identifying and understanding these beneficial bacteria is crucial for their applications in agriculture, biotechnology, and environmental sustainability. Re-searchers can overcome the limitations and improve known techniques, from refining sample collection techniques to developing new computational algorithms. This re-view provides an overview of recent progress in bacterial endophytes identification, exploring both traditional and emerging techniques. It furthermore discusses broad applications of bacterial endophytes in various fields and highlights directions for fu-ture research aimed at enhancing our understanding and utilization of these valuable microorganisms.