Drought‐tolerant Pseudomonas sp. showed differential expression of stress‐responsive genes and induced drought tolerance in Arabidopsis thaliana

• Published in: Physiologia plantarum 2022-01, Vol.174 (1), p.e13497-n/a
• Main Authors: Yasmin, Humaira, Bano, Asghari, Wilson, Neil L., Nosheen, Asia, Naz, Rabia, Hassan, Muhammad Nadeem, Ilyas, Noshin, Saleem, Muhammad Hamzah, Noureldeen, Ahmed, Ahmad, Parvaiz, Kennedy, Ivan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abscisic acid; Abscisic Acid - metabolism; Acetic acid; Alginates; Alginic acid; Arabidopsis - metabolism; Chemical fingerprinting; Chlorophyll; DNA fingerprinting; Drought resistance; Droughts; Exopolysaccharides; Flagella; Gene expression; Genetic diversity; Gibberellic acid; Glycine; Glycine betaine; In vitro methods and tests; Indoleacetic acid; Moisture content; Moisture stress; Nutrient uptake; Presenilin 1; Presenilin 2; Proline; Pseudomonas; Pseudomonas - genetics; Relative humidity; Shoots; Sigma factor; Soil; Soil moisture; Stress, Physiological; Survival; Transcription; Trehalose; Water content; Water deprivation; Water purification
• ISSN: 0031-9317; 1399-3054
• DOI: 10.1111/ppl.13497

The growth and persistence of rhizobacteria in soils are highly impacted by moisture stress. In this study, we report the first transcript analysis of four Pseudomonas strains (PS1, PS2, PS3, and PS4) isolated from the root‐soil interface of rice and maize associated with different moisture levels during water deprivation. Filtered Pseudomonas sp. cells incubated at low (RH10%) and high (RH85%) relative humidity showed decreased survival of all Pseudomonas sp. at RH10% when compared with RH85%. RT‐PCR showed differential expression of treS (trehalose synthase), rpoS (sigma factor), mucA (alginate regulatory gene), and fliM (flagellar motor switch protein gene) in response to exposure to RH10%. However, molecular fingerprinting and nutrient assimilation profile of Pseudomonas strains demonstrated genetic and physiological variation between the four strains irrespective of water regime and host. In vitro testing of these strains showed ACC deaminase activity and gibberellic acid, abscisic acid, indole acetic acid, and exopolysaccharide production. We determined that 50 μl of 1.2 × 103 CFU ml‐1 of these Pseudomonas strains was enough to protect Arabidopsis plants against drought stress in a pot experiment. Inoculated plants increased their root colonization ability and biomass; however, PS2 showed higher survival (95%), relative water content (59%), chlorophyll (30%), glycine betaine (38%), proline (23%), and reduced MDA (43%) in shoots than irrigated control under induced water deprivation. It can be concluded that all Pseudomonas strains were effective in mitigating drought stress, however, PS2 appears to impart more resistance to drought than the other strains by upregulating key defense mechanisms.