Editorial: Soil biodiversity and regenerative agriculture: the path to achieve SDGs

The soil is an ever-changing biological ecosystem, harbour microorganisms that help in nutrient cycling, and are necessary for plant development, disease resistance, and carbon storage. The intensive farming practices of the past decades have completely disrupted these functions by applying large amounts of fertilizers and pesticides, and by carrying out the kind of practices that lower the amount of organic matter and biodiversity in the areas concerned (Pedrinho et al. 2024). Hence, restoring soil biological integrity is a must for regenerative agriculture (Schreefel et al. 2020).The compilation of this topic inmicrobes ande different ways in which microbes help to make nutrients available and to tolerate stress, look into the effects of different biofertilizers and microbial consortia developed for particular crops, and use omics technologies for revealing the interactions between plants and microbes, and contemplate how these findings might be applied on a large scale in regenerative practices. All the studies together suggest crucial approaches that can use to meet up different SDGs: zero hunger (SDG 2), health and well-being (SDG 3), responsible consumption and production (SDG 12), climate change mitigation (SDG 13), and preserving terrestrial ecosystems (SDG 15).This collection comprises six original research articles that each address different facets of soil biodiversity in agricultural contexts. Below, we discuss key contributions and their broader implications.Mitigating salinity in mustard via Bacillus flexusThe research by Singh and Prasad (2025) elaborates the usage of Bacillus flexus, a salt-tolerant PGPR, in improving mustard (Brassica juncea) growth under salt stress. The inoculation with B.flexus resulted in enhance plant development in terms of germination, biomass, leaf area, chlorophyll content, and enzyme activities. Moreover, the bacterial inoculation also showed a reduction in oxidative stress, electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde levels. Thus, these results are pointed at the deployment of stress-tolerant microbial formulations to restore saline soils and increase plant productivity.The study by Jabborova et al. ( 2025) focused on how different soil amendments such as biochar, hydrogel, and biofertilizer affect alfalfa in the salinity-prone areas of the Aral Sea. Three-fold of plant biomass was increased with biochar and biofertilizer application, with biochar being particularly effective in chlorophyll content. Furthermore, the amendments were beneficial in terms of soil quality also, enriched soil nitrogen and phosphorus content. This finding demonstrates the effectiveness of the organic carbon and microbial input strategy that could lead to abiotic stress resilience, a defining characteristic of regenerative agriculture. This research topic exemplify the variability of soil microbial communities in their different roles in regenerative agriculture. Firstly, microbial behavior depends on the location, the carbon content into the soil, the type of crop planted, and the stress conditions in the vicinity. The proper management of these factors can promote beneficial plant-microbe interaction for both agricultural productivity and ecosystem functioning. Secondly, microbe-based approaches benefit in chasing SDGs of multiple areas like lower disease incidence, enhance yield even under unfavorable conditions, and increase the quality of food. Thirdly, the development of highthroughput sequencing can relate microbial community profiles to functional outcomes leading to more precise and effective interventions.