Deciphering the RhizosphereMicrobiome for Disease-Suppressive Bacteria

Disease-suppressive soils are exceptional ecosystems in which crop plants suffer less from specific soil-borne pathogens than expected owing to the activities of other soil microorganisms. For most disease-suppressive soils, the microbes and mechanisms involved in pathogen control are unknown. By co...

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Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2011, Vol.332 (6033)
Main Authors: Mendes, R, Kruijt, M, Bruijn, I., de, Dekkers, E, Voort, M., van der, Schneider, J.H.M, Piceno, Y.M, DeSantis, T.Z, Andersen, G.L, Bakker, P.A.H.M, Raaijmakers, J.M
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pathogens
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Summary:Disease-suppressive soils are exceptional ecosystems in which crop plants suffer less from specific soil-borne pathogens than expected owing to the activities of other soil microorganisms. For most disease-suppressive soils, the microbes and mechanisms involved in pathogen control are unknown. By coupling PhyloChip-based metagenomics of the rhizosphere microbiome with culture-dependent functional analyses, we identified key bacterial taxa and genes involved in suppression of a fungal root pathogen. More than 33,000 bacterial and archaeal species were detected, with Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, and Actinobacteria consistently associated with disease suppression. Members of the ¿-Proteobacteria were shown to have disease-suppressive activity governed by nonribosomal peptide synthetases. Our data indicate that upon attack by a fungal root pathogen, plants can exploit microbial consortia from soil for protection against infections.
ISSN:0036-8075
1095-9203