Plant Drought Tolerance Enhancement by Trehalose Production of Desiccation-Tolerant Microorganisms

Abstract

A collection of desiccation-tolerant xeroprotectant-producing microorganisms was screened for their ability to protect plants against drought, and their role as plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria was investigated in two different crops (tomato and pepper). The most commonly described biochemical mechanisms for plant protection against drought by microorganisms including the production of phytohormones, antioxidants and xeroprotectants were analyzed. In particular, the degree of plant protection against drought provided by these microorganisms was characterized. After studying the findings and comparing them with results of the closest taxonomic relatives at the species and strain levels, we propose that trehalose produced by these microorganisms is correlated with their ability to protect plants against drought. This proposal is based on the increased protection of plants against drought by the desiccation-sensitive microorganism Pseudomonas putida KT2440, which expresses the otsAB genes for trehalose biosynthesis in trans.

Soil Inoculation Alters Leaf Metabolic Profiles in Genetically Identical Plants

“…The concentrations of several compounds such as trehalose, tyrosine and an unknown PA (PA B) increased if J. vulgaris grew with inoculum from site A. Trehalose is involved in stress responses in plants and its effects can be either protective or adverse both in response to abiotic and biotic stress (Fernandez et al 2010). Interestingly, trehalose can be produced by microorganisms such as endophytes and can change the plant's ability to cope with stress (Vílchez et al 2016). Therefore the higher concentrations of trehalose in plants grown with inocula from site A might hint at a specific community of endophytic bacteria that is transferred from the soil to the plant.…”

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“…El grupo cuenta con una colección de bacterias productoras de xeroprotectores, sustancias que protegen las biomoléculas esenciales de las células o incluso las células y tejidos completos de la deshidratación. 9 patentes, gracias a las cuales queda protegido también el uso de estos microorganismos anhidrobiontes para la defensa contra la sequía de cultivos de plantas como el pimiento (Vílchez et al, 2016a). Entre estos xeroprotectores, hay ácidos nucleicos y moléculas que modifican el metabolismo de la planta (Vílchez et al, 2018).…”

Halo-thermophilic bacteria and heterocyst cyanobacteria found adjacent to halophytes at Sabkhas, Qatar: Preliminary study and possible roles

“…In fact, during the last two decades, a huge number of articles and reports of experimental work have suggested many possible mechanisms and methods adopted by microorganisms in alleviating the harsh abiotic stresses facing plants in general and crops in particular (Al-Thani and Yasseen, 2017). These mechanisms include: (a) establishing a biofilm (Qurashi and Sabri, 2012), (b) producing polymers (exopolysacharides) (Qurashi and Sabri, 2011) , 2015;Vílchez et al, 2016 ), (e) producing phytohormones and the enzymes degrading them (Spaepen et al, 2007;Kazan, 2013;Glick, 2014), (f) fixing nitrogen (Ahemad and Kibret, 2014), (g) solubilizing phosphate (Oteino et al, 2015), (h) secreting various regulatory chemicals around the rhizosphere (Ahemad and Kibret, 2014), (i) removing organic (petroleum hydrocarbons) and inorganic (heavy metals) contaminants from soil and water (Yasseen, 2014), (j) producing antibiotics (Ahmed et al, 2013;Bizuye et al, 2013) and (k) increasing carbon utilization efficiency (Gougoulias et al, 2014).…”