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Inoculation Effects of Pseudomonas putida, Gluconacetobacter azotocaptans, and Azospirillum lipoferum on Corn Plant Growth Under Greenhouse Conditions

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Abstract

Alcohol production from corn is gaining importance in Ontario, Canada, and elsewhere. A major cost of corn production is the cost of chemical fertilizers and these continue to increase in price. The competitiveness of alcohol with fossil fuels depends on access to low-cost corn that allows growers to earn a sustainable income. In this study we set out to determine if we can identify root-associated microorganisms from Ontario-grown corn that can enhance the nutrient flow to corn roots, directly or indirectly, and help minimize the use of extraneous fertilizer. Bacteria were isolated from corn rhizosphere and screened for their capacity to enhance corn growth. The bacteria were examined for their ability to fix nitrogen, solubilize phosphate, and produce indole acetic acid (IAA) and antifungal substances on potato dextrose agar. Bacterial suspensions were applied to pregerminated seed of four corn varieties (39D82, 39H84, 39M27, and 39T68) planted in sterilized sand and unsterilized cornfield soil. The plants were grown under greenhouse conditions for 30 days. Three isolates were identified as having growth-promoting effect. These bacteria were identified as to species by biochemical tests, fatty acid profiles, and 16S rDNA sequence analysis. Corn rhizosphere isolates, Gluconacetobacter azotocaptans DS1, Pseudomonas putida CQ179, and Azospirillum lipoferum N7, provided significant plant growth promotion expressed as increased root/shoot weight when compared to uninoculated plants, in sand and/or soil. All strains except P. putida CQ179 were capable of nitrogen fixation and IAA production. Azospirillum brasilense, however, produced significantly more IAA than the other isolates. Although several of the strains were also able to solubilize phosphate and produce metabolites inhibitory to various fungal pathogens, these properties are not considered as contributing to growth promotion under the conditions used in this study. These bacteria will undergo field tests for their effect on corn growth.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Jackie Hill for her help in statistical analysis of data, Brian McGarvey for gas chromatography, Robert Pocs for analysis of indole-3-acetic acid, Brian Weselowski for sequencing reactions, Tom Kowalik for laboratory work and greenhouse experiments, and Alex Richman for primer design. This work was supported by grants from Commercial Alcohols Inc. (Brampton, Ontario, Canada) and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

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  1. Southern Crop Protection and Food Research Centre, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, 1391 Sandford Street, London, Ontario, Canada, N5V4T3

    Samina Mehnaz & George Lazarovits

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  1. Samina Mehnaz
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  2. George Lazarovits
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Correspondence to George Lazarovits.

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Mehnaz, S., Lazarovits, G. Inoculation Effects of Pseudomonas putida, Gluconacetobacter azotocaptans, and Azospirillum lipoferum on Corn Plant Growth Under Greenhouse Conditions. Microb Ecol 51, 326–335 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-006-9039-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-006-9039-7

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