School of BioSciences - Research Publications

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Author: Roessner, Ute × Author: Schillaci, Martino × Author: Walker, Robert × End date: 2023 × Start date: 2020 × Type: Journal Article ×

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    Time-resolution of the shoot and root growth of the model cereal Brachypodium in response to inoculation with Azospirillum bacteria at low phosphorus and temperature
    Schillaci, M ; Arsova, B ; Walker, R ; Smith, PMC ; Nagel, KA ; Roessner, U ; Watt, M (Springer Verlag, 2021-01)
    A non-invasive plant phenotyping platform, GrowScreen-PaGe, was used to resolve the dynamics of shoot and root growth of the model cereal Brachypodium (Brachypodium distachyon Bd21-3) in response to the plant growth promoting (PGP) bacteria Azospirillum (Azospirillum brasilense Sp245). Inoculated Brachypodium plants had greater early vigor and higher P use efficiency than non-inoculated Brachypodium at low P and low temperature conditions. Root systems were imaged non-invasively at eight time points and data combined with leaf area, shoot biomass and nutrient content from destructive subsamples at 7, 14 and 21 days after inoculation (DAI). Azospirillum colonisation of roots improved Brachypodium shoot and, to a greater degree, root growth in three independent experiments. Inoculation promoted P use efficiency in shoots but not P concentration or uptake, despite increased total root length. Longer roots in inoculated plants arose from twofold faster branch root growth but slower axile root growth, detected at 11 DAI. Analysis of the spatio-temporal phenotypes indicated that the effects of Azospirillum inoculation increased as shoot P concentration declined, but the magnitude depended on the time after inoculation and growth rate of branch roots compared to axile roots. High throughput plant phenotyping platforms allow the details of plant-microorganism symbioses to be resolved, offering insights into the timing of changes in different tissues to allow molecular mechanisms to be determined.
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    Alleviation of salinity stress in plants by endophytic plant-fungal symbiosis: Current knowledge, perspectives and future directions
    Gupta, S ; Schillaci, M ; Walker, R ; Smith, PMC ; Watt, M ; Roessner, U (SPRINGER, 2020-07-09)
    Salinization of soil with sodium chloride ions inhibits plant functions, causing reduction of yield of crops. Salt tolerant microorganisms have been studied to enhance crop growth under salinity. This review describes the performance of endophytic fungi applied to crops as a supplement to plant genetics or soil management to alleviate salt stress in crops. This is achieved via inducing systemic resistance, increasing the levels of beneficial metabolites, activating antioxidant systems to scavenge ROS, and modulating plant growth phytohormones. Colonization by endophytic fungi improves nutrient uptake and maintains ionic homeostasis by modulating ion accumulation, thereby restricting the transport of Na+ to leaves and ensuring a low cytosolic Na+:K+ ratio in plants. Participating endophytic fungi enhance transcripts of genes encoding the high Affinity Potassium Transporter 1 (HKT1) and the inward-rectifying K+ channels KAT1 and KAT2, which play key roles in regulating Na+ and K+ homeostasis. Endophytic-induced interplay of strigolactones play regulatory roles in salt tolerance by interacting with phytohormones. Future research requires further attention on the biochemical, molecular and genetic mechanisms crucial for salt stress resistance requires further attention for future research. Furthermore, to design strategies for sustained plant health with endophytic fungi, a new wave of exploration of plant-endophyte responses to combinations of stresses is mandatory.