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Recovery of Bacillus and Pseudomonas spp. from the ‘Fired Plots’ Under Shifting Cultivation in Northeast India

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Abstract

Soil samples, collected after the fire operations at agricultural sites under shifting cultivation in northeast India, were subjected to physico-chemical and microbial analysis. The fire affected various physico-chemical properties of the soil. Significant differences in pH and electrical conductivity were recorded in soil of fired and fallow plots. Significantly higher amounts of total organic carbon and nitrogen were estimated in fallow plots as compared to the fired. Difference in total phosphates was not significant. The fire operations resulted in stimulation of microbial communities. The bacteria were the most affected group followed by actinomycetes and fungi, respectively. The bacterial and actinomycetes counts were significantly higher in fired plots as compared to the fallow plots. The representative bacterial species recovered from the ‘fired plots’ belonged to the genus Bacillus and Pseudomonas. 16S rRNA analysis revealed their maximum similarity with B. clausii, B. licheniformis, B. megaterium, B. subtilis, B. thuringiensis, P. aeruginosa and P. stutzeri. Most of these species were found to be positive for phosphate solubilization and antagonism in plate based assays. In view of the importance of Bacillus and Pseudomonas species in plant growth promotion and biocontrol, recovery of these species after fire operations is indicative of the microbiological merit of shifting cultivation.

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Acknowledgements

The Ministry of Environment and Forests, Govt. of India, New Delhi, is thanked for financial support. Help received from Dr Yogesh S Shouche, NCCS, Pune, is gratefully acknowledged for extending the sequencing facility.

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Author notes

  1. Avinash Sharma

    Present address: Molecular Biology Unit, National Center for Cell Science, Pune, 411007, Maharashtra, India

  2. Vipin Singh Choudhary

    Present address: SV Instruments, New Delhi, India

  3. Pankaj Trivedi

    Present address: Citrus Research and Education Center, University of Florida, 700, Experiment Station Road, Lake Alfred, FL, 33850, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biotechnological Applications Theme, G.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development, Kosi-Katarmal, Almora, 263643, Uttarakhand, India

    Anita Pandey, Shivaji Chaudhry, Avinash Sharma, Vipin Singh Choudhary, Mukesh Kumar Malviya, Swati Chamoli, K. Rinu, Pankaj Trivedi & Lok Man S. Palni

  2. Biotechnological Applications Theme, G.B. Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment and Development, Vivek Vihar, Itanagar, 791113, Arunachal Pradesh, India

    Shivaji Chaudhry

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  1. Anita Pandey
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Correspondence to Anita Pandey.

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Pandey, A., Chaudhry, S., Sharma, A. et al. Recovery of Bacillus and Pseudomonas spp. from the ‘Fired Plots’ Under Shifting Cultivation in Northeast India. Curr Microbiol 62, 273–280 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-010-9702-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-010-9702-6

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