We report for the first time that a nonpathogenic bacterial microflora has been found in a suspension culture of Arabidopsis thaliana cells. The 16S rRNA gene sequencing showed that the isolate belonged to Rothia amarae. Identification was confirmed by microbiological, microscopic, and immunochemical methods. Growth of the isolate on blood agar preserves the morphological and immunochemical properties of the isolate from the plant cell suspension culture. Whether the isolated strain is a contaminant or a true symbiont remains an open question. It is known that Rothia bacteria live mostly in oceanic and waste water and in benthos. Members of Rothia are part of the normal microflora of the oral cavity, respiratory tract, and stomach of humans. Endophytic Rothia are inhibitory against several pathogenic fungi and bacteria. In addition, some actinobacteria, including members of Rothia, are nitrogen fixers. It cannot be ruled out that the R. amarae strain isolated in this work can be endosymbiotic with a suspension culture of A. thaliana. The bacterial "inclusions" found by us in a suspension culture of A. thaliana merit further investigation to identify them more deeply and clarify their symbiotic properties.
The presence of non-pathogenic bacterial microflora in Arabidopsis thaliana suspension culture has been shown to coexist latently with plant cells for a long time. According to the results of 16S rRNA sequencing, it was shown that the detected bacteria belong to the species Rothia amarae. Using microbiological, microscopic and immunochemical methods, the correspondence of the obtained strain to the species Rothia amarae was also confirmed.
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