Potential of Microbial Diversity of Coastal Sand Dunes: Need for Exploration in Odisha Coast of India

Abstract

Coastal sand dunes are hips and strips formed by sand particles which are eroded and ground rock, derived from terrestrial and oceanic sources. This is considered as a specialized ecosystem characterized by conditions which are hostile for life forms like high salt, low moisture, and low organic matter content. However, dunes are also inhabited by diverse groups of flora, fauna, and microorganisms specifically adapted to these situations. Microbial groups like fungi, bacteria, and actinobacteria are quite abundant in the rhizosphere, phyllosphere, and inside plants which are very much essential for the integration of dunes. Microorganisms in this ecosystem have been found to produce a number of bioactive metabolites which are of great importance to agriculture and industries. Many species of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and Rhizobia associated with the roots of dune flora are prolific producers of plant growth promoting biochemicals like indole acetic acid. In addition to that bacteria belonging to Pseudomonas sp., Gammaproteobacteria have been found to have antagonistic activity towards plant pathogens like Rhizoctonia solani, Pythium ultimum, Fusarium oxysporum, and Botrytis cinerea. Many neutrophilic and alkaliphilic eubacterial species, endophytic fungi from dunes have proved their ability for the production of extracellular enzymes like cellulase, pectinase, amylase, protease, tannase, chitinase, etc., which are of great importance to various industries. In this context, it is relevant to observe that the state of Odisha in India has a 480km long coast having numerous sand dunes. These dunes are rich in floral and faunal diversity. However, a comprehensive study is yet to be taken up to explore the microbial diversity and their bioactive potential in this region. The current review sheds light on the enormous potential of sand dune microorganisms in the coast and surfaced the idea and need for such exploration in the state of Odisha, India.

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) promote the growth of the pioneer dune plant of coastal areas

“…The justification presented above may be applicable to the present work, since dune soil, characteristically known for low organic matter decomposition and low soil fertility (Camprubíet et al, 2010;Oliveira and Landim, 2020), the same characteristics were presented by the substrate used, and as suggested by Smith and Read (2008) and Nayak et al (2019), the AMF were probably stimulated in soils with low fertility. The percentage of root colonization (% M) by AMF increased from 6.4 to 10.2% throughout the experiment (Figure 4).…”

Abundance of Live and Dead Bacteriopsammon Inhabiting Sandy Ecosystems of Recreational Marine Beaches of the Southern Baltic Sea

“…These organic compounds can generate growth, production, and high number of bacteria in these zones of marine beach. Moreover, dune which acts as a biocatalytic filter is enriched with humic substances originating from decaying roots of grasses growing on it [66,67]. Humic substances may be utilized by bacteria very intensively in metabolic processes as a good source of carbon or energy [68].…”

Plant-associated endophytic fungi as potential bio-factories for extracellular enzymes: Progress, Challenges and Strain improvement with precision approaches

“…It is recommended to use non-pathogenic microbial strains for industrial processes (Bennur et al, 2015). Nayak et al (2019) reported extremophiles isolated from plantations prevalent in the dune ecosystem for extracellular production of chitinases. There is much scope for getting diverse endophytes from extreme environments.…”