ReviewBeneficial endophytic microorganisms of Brassica – A review
Graphical abstract
Introduction
Brassica is a genus in the mustard family Brassicaceae and species within the genus are more commonly known as mustards or cabbages. The former name for the family, Cruciferae, was given to describe the arrangement of the petals of mustard flowers in the shape of a cross. In many angiosperms, including Brassica species, the fruits are modified during development to facilitate a more effective means of seed dispersal. Species of Brassica are distinguished from other dicotyledonous plants on the basis of possessing segmented fruits that contain seeds in one or both segments and/or the presence of conduplicate cotyledons (i.e. the cotyledons are longitudinally folded around the radical) (Gómez-Campo, 1980). The Brassica genus is believed to have originated between the Mediterranean and Saharan regions where the climate consists of mild winters followed by hot dry summers, although many species within the genus are now well adapted to growing in colder conditions. The Mediterranean basin environment may also have led to the evolution of drought and salt adapted taxa within the genus (Gómez-Campo, 1980). The majority of the 37 species within the genus are annuals or biennials which range from weedy wild plants to domesticated crops (Rakow, 2004). Many species of Brassica are now regarded as naturalised throughout the world, commonly observed in Western Europe, the Mediterranean and temperate regions of Asia. Many species also grow as invasive weeds in the Americas (North and South) and Australasia.
Domesticated species such as Brassica oleracea and Brassica napus, are now cultivated worldwide (Warwick et al., 2009), predominantly as important food crops and sources of vegetable oil, respectively. Table 1 contains an abbreviated list of Brassica species with an emphasis on economically important ones. Crop brassicas display enormous diversity and subsequently provide the widest assortment of products used by man from a single plant genus (Dixon, 2007). Many species are important for both agriculture and horticulture, being significant human and animal food sources with many parts of the plant being edible, including their buds, flowers, leaves, roots, seeds, stems and tubers (Gómez-Campo, 1980, Warwick et al., 2009). Brassica are also valued in bioremediation, as ornamentals, sources of medicines, soil conditioners, green manures, composting crops and many species are important in the production of edible and industrial oils such as liquid fuels and lubricants in diesel engines (Dixon, 2007, Gómez-Campo, 1980, Rakow, 2004, Rao and Horn, 1995). For example B. napus seed has become one of the world’s leading sources of vegetable oil and the primary oil for the production of biodiesel in Europe, with the by-product being used as a high protein animal feed (Cardone et al., 2003, Delourme et al., 2006, Körbitz, 1999). The aim of this review is to describe the literature concerning beneficial microbial endophytes and their prospects to enhance or provide additional traits to their Brassica host species.
Section snippets
Endophytic microorganisms that associate with Brassicaceae species
There are many wild species of Brassica that have potential as new sources of vegetable oil, use in industrial processing, as condiments, replacements for synthetic soil fumigants and as new food crops for humans and animals (Cardone et al., 2003, Grossman, 1993, Laghetti et al., 2005, Sarwar et al., 1998, Warwick et al., 2009). Certain wild relatives of Brassica also possess a number of useful agronomic traits that could be incorporated into breeding programs, such as resistance to bacterial
Mechanisms underpinning endophyte-derived beneficial activities
Just as endophytes of Brassicaceae differ in their genotypic diversity, they also contrast in the mechanisms that underpin their antagonistic behaviour or plant promotional traits they confer upon their plant hosts. However, this depth of scientific understanding is largely in its infancy with research published in the literature either scarce or not fully understood (Ali et al., 2014). Compared to traditional biological control scenarios that either take place in the rhizosphere or
Beneficial endophytes of Brassica – a commercial reality?
There are currently no commercial products based solely on endophytic microorganisms aimed specifically at the Brassica industry. However, strains of Bacillus subtilis have been incorporated into two commercially available biological control products, Serenade® (Bayer CropScience, previously marketed by Agraquest Inc.) and Subtilex® NG (BeckerUnderwood, now part of BASF). Both these products have been trialled on cabbage for protection against Xcc and reduced seed to seedling transmission of
Economically important pests and pathogens of Brassica species
Brassica species are attacked by a wide range of insect pests and pathogens that feed on the plants stems, roots, leaves, flowers and seed (Dixelius et al., 2004) with little or no control options available (Granér et al., 2003). The increase in the economic importance of Brassica crops over the last two decades has led to an expansion in the research on Brassica pests and diseases (Dixelius et al., 2004). The most destructive pests of Brassica include piercing, sucking and chewing insects with
Conclusions
There is great potential for the use of endophytic microorganisms in adding beneficial traits to Brassica crops, with evidence increasing in the literature for asymptomatic mutualistic plant/microbial associations. This linked to the increasing economic importance of Brassica, especially oilseed rape, across the world and the correlation with increasing populations of pathogens and insect pests make this a valuable area to further investigate and exploit in commercial scenarios. Elite
Acknowledgments
We thank Christine Voisey and Suliana Teasdale for critical revision of the manuscript, Joy Dick for help in searching the literature and Pauline Hunt for producing the graphical abstract. Funding was kindly provided by Grasslanz Technology Ltd.
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