Yeongyeong Kang

Beneficial Soil Bacterium Pseudomonas frederiksbergensis OS261 Augments Salt Tolerance and Promotes Red Pepper Plant Growth

Soil salinity, being a part of natural ecosystems, is an increasing problem in agricultural soils throughout the world. Pseudomonas frederiksbergensis OS261 has already been proved to be an effective bio-inoculant for enhancing cold stress tolerance in plants, however, its effect on salt stress tolerance is unknown. The main aim of the present study was to elucidate P. frederiksbergensis OS261 mediated salt stress tolerance in red pepper. The plants were exposed to a salt stress using NaCl at the concentrations of 50, 100, and 150 mM after 12 days of transplantation, while plant growth and enzyme activity were estimated 50 days after sowing. The height in P. frederiksbergensis OS261 inoculated plants was significantly increased by 19.05, 34.35, 57.25, and 61.07% compared to un-inoculated controls at 0, 50, 100, and 150 mM of NaCl concentrations, respectively, under greenhouse conditions. The dry biomass of the plants increased by 31.97, 37.47, 62.67, and 67.84% under 0, 50, 100, and 150 mM of NaCl concentrations, respectively. A high emission of ethylene was observed in un-inoculated red pepper plants under salinity stress. P. frederiksbergensis OS261 inoculation significantly reduced ethylene emission by 20.03, 18.01, and 20.07% at 50, 100, and 150 mM of NaCl concentrations, respectively. Furthermore, the activity of antioxidant enzymes (ascorbate peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, and catalase) also varied in the inoculated red pepper plants. Salt stress resistance in the bacterized plants was evident from the improved antioxidant activity in leaf tissues and the decreased hydrogen ion concentration. Thus, we conclude that P. frederiksbergensis OS261 possesses stress mitigating property which can enhance plant growth under high soil salinity by reducing the emission of ethylene and regulating antioxidant enzymes.

The influence of host genotype and salt stress on the seed endophytic community of salt-sensitive and salt-tolerant rice cultivars

BackgroundInherent characteristics and changes in the physiology of rice as it attains salt tolerance affect the colonizing bacterial endophytic communities of the rice seeds. These transmissible endophytes also serve as a source of the plant’s microbial community and concurrently respond to the host and environmental conditions. This study explores the influence of the rice host as well as the impact of soil salinity on the community structure and diversity of seed bacterial endophytes of rice with varying tolerance to salt stress. Endophytic bacterial diversity was studied through culture-dependent technique and Terminal-Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (T-RFLP) analysis.ResultsResults revealed considerably diverse communities of bacterial endophytes in the interior of rice seeds. The overall endophytic bacterial communities of the indica rice seeds based on 16S rRNA analysis of clones and isolates are dominated by phylum Proteobacteria followed by Actinobacteria and Firmicutes. Community profiles show common ribotypes found in all cultivars of the indica subspecies representing potential core microbiota belonging to Curtobacterium, Flavobacterium, Enterobacter, Xanthomonas, Herbaspirillum, Microbacterium and Stenotrophomonas. Clustering analysis shows that the host genotype mainly influences the seed endophytic community of the different rice cultivars. Under salt stress conditions, endophytic communities of the salt-sensitive and salt-tolerant rice cultivars shift their dominance to bacterial groups belonging to Flavobacterium, Pantoea, Enterobacter, Microbacterium, Kosakonia and Curtobacterium.ConclusionThe endophytic communities of rice indica seeds are shaped by the hosts’ genotype, their physiological adaptation to salt stress and phylogenetic relatedness. Under salt stress conditions, a few groups of bacterial communities become prominent causing a shift in bacterial diversity and dominance.

Trap Culture Technique for Propagation of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi using Different Host Plants

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) spore propagation and long term maintenance is still a complicated technique for farmers. The use of AMF for their ability to promote plant growth and protect plants against pathogen attack and environmental stresses demands AMF propagation for large scale application. This study aimed to propagate AMF spores by trap culture technique and assess their ability to propagate with different host plants in a continuous plant cycle. Mycorrhizal inoculation by trap culture in maize resulted in longer shoots and roots than sudangrass plants. Increase in dry weight with higher percentage also was observed for maize plants. After first and second plant cycle, maize plants had the higher percentage of mycorrhizal response in terms of colonization and arbuscules than sudangrass. Maximum in spore count also achieved in the pots of maize plants. The results show that maize plant is more suitable host plant for AMF spore propagation and trap culture technique can be used effectively to maintain the AMF culture for long time.

Conservation and transmission of seed bacterial endophytes across generations following crossbreeding and repeated inbreeding of rice at different geographic locations

There are comparatively diverse bacterial communities inside seeds, which are vertically transmitted and conserved, becoming sources of endophytes in the next generation of host plants. We studied how rice seed endophyte composition changed over time following crossbreeding, repeated inbreeding, subsequent human selection and planting of different rice seeds in different ecogeographical locations. Using terminal‐restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis to study bacterial communities, we observed that diversity between the original parents and their offspring may show significant differences in richness, evenness and diversity indices. Heat maps reveal substantial contributions of both or either parent in the shaping of the bacterial seed endophytes of the offspring. Most of the terminal restriction fragments (T‐RFs) of the subsequent progeny could be traced to any or both of its parents while unique T‐RFs of the offspring suggest external sources of colonization particularly when the seeds were cultivated in different locations. Many similar groups of endophytic bacteria persist in the seeds even after recultivation in different locations, indicating resilience to environmental changes and conservation of bacteria across generations. This study suggests that parent plants contributed to the shaping of seed bacterial endophytes of their offspring, although it is also possible that these soil grown rice plants recruit similar populations of endophytes from the soil generation after generation. This study also highlights some bacterial groups belonging to Herbaspirillum, Microbacterium, Curtobacterium, Stenotrophomonas, Xanthomonas and Enterobacter that may be part of a transmitted and conserved “core microbiota” that are ubiquitous and dominant members of the endophytic communities of the rice seeds.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi spore propagation using single spore as starter inoculum and a plant host

The propagation of pure cultures of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal (AMF) is an essential requirement for their large‐scale agricultural application and commercialization as biofertilizers. The present study aimed to propagate AMF using the single‐spore inoculation technique and compare their propagation ability with the known reference spores.

The bacterial community structure and functional profile in the heavy metal contaminated paddy soils, surrounding a nonferrous smelter in South Korea

Abstract The pollution of agricultural soils by the heavy metals affects the productivity of the land and has an impact on the quality of the surrounding ecosystems. This study investigated the bacterial community structure in the heavy metal contaminated sites along a smelter and a distantly located paddy field to elucidate the factors that are related to the alterations of the bacterial communities under the conditions of heavy metal pollution. Among the study sites, the bacterial communities in the soil did not show any significant differences in their richness and diversity. The soil bacterial communities at the three study sites were distinct from one another at each site, possessing a distinct set of bacterial phylotypes. Among the study sites, significant changes were observed in the abundances of the bacterial phyla and genera. The variations in the bacterial community structure were mostly related to the general soil properties at the phylum level, while at the finer taxonomic levels, the concentrations of arsenic (As) and lead (Pb) were the significant factors, affecting the community structure. The relative abundances of the genera Desulfatibacillum and Desulfovirga were negatively correlated to the concentrations of As, Pb, and cadmium (Cd) in the soil, while the genus Bacillus was positively correlated to the concentrations of As and Cd. According to the results of the prediction of bacterial community functions, the soil bacterial communities of the heavy metal polluted sites were characterized by the more abundant enzymes involved in DNA replication and repair, translation, transcription, and the nucleotide metabolism pathways, while the amino acid and lipid metabolism, as well as the biodegradation potential of xenobiotics, were reduced. Our results showed that the adaptation of the bacterial communities to the heavy metal contamination was predominantly attributed to the replacement process, while the changes in community richness were linked to the variations in the soil pH values.

Potential Microbiological Approaches for the Remediation of Heavy Metal-Contaminated Soils

In recent years, due to the geological and anthropogenic activities, metal pollution in soil has been increased drastically. Utilization of microorganisms to remediate the metal-contaminated soil is known as bioremediation. Bioremediation is an important area of research that offers economically effective clean-up technique than the conventional methods. Microorganisms use different mechanisms such as biosorption, bioaccumulation, chelating agents, bioleaching, biomineralization and enzyme-catalysed transformation to convert toxic form of metals to less toxic form. In addition, plants also offer various methods like absorption and accumulation of metals in plant cells and formation of metal-bound compounds. Integrated use of microorganism and plant in bioremediation may ensure an effective clean-up of heavy metals in polluted soils. This chapter summarizes the microbial- and plant-microbe-mediated methods for the clean-up of heavy metal-contaminated soil.

Halotolerant Plant Growth Promoting Bacteria Mediated Salinity Stress Amelioration in Plants

Soil salinization refers to the buildup of salts in soil to a level toxic to plants. The major factors that contribute to soil salinity are the quality, the amount and the type of irrigation water used. The presented review discusses the different sources and causes of soil salinity. The effect of soil salinity on biological processes of plants is also discussed in detail. This is followed by a debate on the influence of salt on the nutrient uptake and growth of plants. Salinity decreases the soil osmotic potential and hinders water uptake by the plants. Soil salinity affects the plants K uptake, which plays a critical role in plant metabolism due to the high concentration of soluble sodium (Na + ) ions. Visual symptoms that appear in the plants as a result of salinity include stunted plant growth, marginal leaf necrosis and fruit distortions. Different strategies to ameliorate salt stress globally include breeding of salt tolerant cultivars, irrigation to leach excessive salt to improve soil physical and chemical properties. As part of an ecofriendly means to alleviate salt stress and an increasing considerable attention on this area, the review then focuses on the different plant growth promoting bacteria (PGPB) mediated mechanisms with a special emphasis on ACC deaminase producing bacteria. The various strategies adopted by PGPB to alleviate various stresses in plants include the production of different osmolytes, stress related phytohormones and production of molecules related to stress signaling such as bacterial 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate(ACC) derivatives. The use of PGPB with ACC deaminase producing trait could be effective in promoting plant growth in agricultural areas affected by different stresses including salt stress. Finally, the review ends with a discussion on the various PGPB activities and the potentiality of facultative halophilic/halotolerant PGPB in alleviating salt stress.

An Overview of Different Techniques on the Microbial Community Structure, and Functional Diversity of Plant Growth Promoting Bacteria

Soil is a dynamic biological system, in which it is difficult to determine the composition of microbial communities. Knowledge of microbial diversity and function in soils are limited because of the taxonomic and methodological limitations associated with studying the organisms. In this review, approaches to measure microbial diversity in soil were discussed. Research on soil microbes can be categorized as structural diversity, functional diversity and genetic diversity studies, and these include cultivation based and cultivation independent methods. Cultivation independent technique to evaluate soil structural diversity include different techniques such as Phospholipid Fatty Acids (PLFA) and Fatty Acid Methyl Ester (FAME) analysis. Carbon source utilization pattern of soil microorganisms by Community Level Physiological Profiling (CLPP), catabolic responses by Substrate Induced Respiration technique (SIR) and soil microbial enzyme activities are discussed. Genetic diversity of soil microorganisms using molecular techniques such as 16S rDNA analysis Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (DGGE) / Temperature Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (TGGE), Terminal Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (T-RFLP), Single Strand Conformation Polymorphism (SSCP), Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism (RFLP) / Amplified Ribosomal DNA Restriction Analysis (ARDRA) and Ribosomal Intergenic Spacer Analysis (RISA) are also discussed. The chapter ends with a final conclusion on the advantages and disadvantages of different techniques and advances in molecular techniques to study the soil microbial diversity.