Bacteriophages for Plant Disease Control

The growing need for increased food production globally has led the farmers and scientists equally to devise means to increase plant productivity through several practices, including disease management. A number of plant diseases caused by bacteria have huge economic impact on global crop productivity. Although chemical control practices may be effective, they pose a threat to the environment and to the food chain. With the discovery of antibiotics in the 1940s, the concept of using bacteriophages was abandoned. However, its use has re-emerged, and is a rapidly growing area for controlling bacterial plant pathogens. In this book, we present the historical and recent developments, concepts, factors, challenges and concerns of using bacteriophages for plant disease control. We hope that the book will be a valuable reference for students, researchers, teachers as well as agriculturists while choosing environmentally safe and sustainable plant pest management techniques.