Alleviation of cold stress in inoculated wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) seedlings with psychrotolerant Pseudomonads from NW Himalayas

• Published in: Archives of microbiology 2011-07, Vol.193 (7), p.497-513
• Main Authors: Mishra, Pankaj Kumar, Bisht, Shekhar Chandra, Ruwari, Pooja, Selvakumar, Govindan, Joshi, Gopal Krishna, Bisht, Jaideep Kumar, Bhatt, Jagdish Chandra, Gupta, Hari Shankar
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abiotic stress; Agricultural production; Agricultural research; Altitude; Amino acids; Anthocyanins - analysis; Bacteriology; Biochemistry; Biological and medical sciences; Biomass; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biotechnology; Cell Biology; Chlorophyll - analysis; Climatic conditions; Cold Temperature; DNA, Bacterial - genetics; Ecology; Ecosystem; Electrolyte leakage; Electrolytes; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; India; Iron - analysis; Life Sciences; Metabolites; Microbial Ecology; Microbiology; Microorganisms; Miscellaneous; Nutrient uptake; Original Paper; Phenols; Phylogeny; Physiology; Plant growth; Plant Roots - growth & development; Plant Roots - metabolism; Plant Roots - microbiology; Plant Shoots - growth & development; Plant Shoots - metabolism; Plant Shoots - microbiology; Productivity; Pseudomonas - genetics; Pseudomonas - isolation & purification; Pseudomonas - physiology; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S - genetics; Seedlings; Seedlings - drug effects; Seedlings - growth & development; Seedlings - metabolism; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Soil sciences; Starch - analysis; Statistical analysis; Stress, Physiological; Triticum - growth & development; Triticum - metabolism; Triticum - microbiology; Triticum aestivum; Water - metabolism; Water content; Wheat
• ISSN: 0302-8933; 1432-072X
• DOI: 10.1007/s00203-011-0693-x

Twelve psychrotolerant Pseudomonad strains were selected on the basis of various plant growth-promoting (PGP) activities at cold temperature (4°C). The effect of inoculation with Pseudomonad strains on cold alleviation and growth of wheat seedling at cold temperature (8°C) was investigated under greenhouse condition. Inoculation with Pseudomonad strains significantly enhanced root/shoot biomass and nutrients uptake as compared to non-bacterized control at 60 days of plant growth. Bacterization significantly improved the level of cellular metabolites like chlorophyll, anthocyanin, free proline, total phenolics, starch content, physiologically available iron, proteins, and amino acids that are sign of alleviation of cold stress in wheat plants. Increased relative water content, reduced membrane injury (electrolyte leakage), and Na + /K + ratio were also recorded in bacterized wheat plants. Electrolyte leakage and Na + /K + were found inversely proportional to plant growth at cold temperature. Statistical analysis of twenty-three measured parameters revealed that uninoculated control was under cold stress while eight bacterial strains were positively alleviating cold stress in wheat plants. Thus, the psychrotrophic Pseudomonad strains could effectively provide a promising solution to overcome cold stress, which is major factor hindering wheat productivity under cold climatic condition.