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Endophytic colonization of sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) by the novel diazotrophs Shinella sp. UYSO24 and Enterobacter sp. UYSO10

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Abstract

Aims

Sugarcane is a multipurpose crop mostly used in Uruguay for bioethanol production. It requires high amounts of N fertilization for optimal growth, which causes environmental degradation and high production costs. Previously, a bacterial collection associated with surface-sterilized stems of sugarcane was characterized for in vitro plant growth-promoting (PGP) traits. The aims of this study were (1) to determine if selected isolates from the collection are sugarcane growth promoters and (2) to determine if they are true endophytes of sugarcane.

Methods

Plant growth promotion assays were used to study the effects of selected isolates on sugarcane plantlets. Light microscopy, transmission electron, and scanning electron microscopy (TEM, SEM) were employed to describe the structure of the interaction between the plant growth-promoting bacteria and the plants. qPCR was used to quantify the bacteria residing in the inner plant tissues.

Results

Enterobacter sp. UYSO10 and Shinella sp. UYSO24 were confirmed to have a PGP effect on the commercial sugarcane cv. LCP 85384. Both strains were defined as true endophytes of sugarcane plants with this being the first case for a strain in the genus Shinella in grasses.

Conclusions

These data will contribute to the final development of a sugarcane PGP inoculant based on endophytic plant growth-promoting bacteria.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a grant from the Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Agronómicas [grant number INIA-FPTA-275, INIA-FPTA-331], the Agencia Nacional de Innovación e Investigación del Uruguay (ANII) and the Programa de Desarrollo de las Ciencias Básicas (PEDECIBA). The authors are very grateful to Danielli Rosinol Frade for her assistance in microscopy techniques, Martin Beracochea for bioinformatic analysis and to MSc Irene Arpayoglou, for her assistance with corrections to the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Microbial Biochemistry and Genomics Department, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable (IIBCE), Avenida Italia 3318, Montevideo, 11600, Uruguay

    Cecilia Taulé & Federico Battistoni

  2. Biotechnology Unit, Estación Experimental Wilson Ferreira Aldunate, Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias (INIA), Km 10 de la Ruta 48, Rincón del Colorado (INIA-Las Brujas), Canelones, Uruguay

    Alicia Castillo

  3. Electronic Microscopy Unit, Faculty of Science, Universidad de la República (UdelaR), Iguá 4225, Montevideo, 11400, Uruguay

    Silvia Villar

  4. Laboratory of Cell and Tissue Biology, North Fluminense State University Darcy Ribeiro, Av. Alberto Lamego 2000, Campos dos Goytacazes, 28013-602, Brazil

    Fabio Olivares

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  1. Cecilia Taulé
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  2. Alicia Castillo
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  3. Silvia Villar
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  4. Fabio Olivares
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  5. Federico Battistoni
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Correspondence to Federico Battistoni.

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Taulé, C., Castillo, A., Villar, S. et al. Endophytic colonization of sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) by the novel diazotrophs Shinella sp. UYSO24 and Enterobacter sp. UYSO10. Plant Soil 403, 403–418 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-016-2813-5

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