Abstract
To determine differences in microbial community structure, phospholipid fatty acids (PL-FA) from rhizosphere bacteria of two different wheat cultivars Triticum aestivum L. (cv. Bohouth-6 and cv. Salamouni) were extracted and analyzed by gas chromatography. This approach was used to overcome the methodological underestimation of microbial densities obtained with isolation, culture techniques and microscopic observations. Our objective was to verify differences in PL-FA profiles from two wheat cultivars grown under controlled environmental conditions. Principal component analysis (PCA) and cluster analysis were used to detect dissimilarities between rhizosphere microbial communities of the two wheat cultivars and signature fatty acids (FA) were used to determine specific differences in the community structures. PCA of the two cultivars explained 79.18% of the variance on principal component 1 (PC1), which accounted for Bohouth-6 rhizosphere soil. The rhizosphere soil of Salamouni accounted for 11.66% of the variance on principal component 2 (PC2). The results demonstrated repeatedly the clustering of the samples into two distinct groups; each group belonging specifically to one of the two wheat cultivars. Profiles of Bohouth-6 showed higher amounts of cyclopropane acid 19:0cy and Sif 7 (Sum in feature 7) than Salamouni. Those FA are known as signature molecules for Gram-negative bacteria. This was also reflected by the higher bacterial counts (cfu g−1 fresh root weight) of Gram-negative bacteria from the rhizosphere of the former than the latter. The results indicated that under controlled environmental conditions, wheat cultivars of different genotypes exhibit distinct microbial colonization in their rhizosphere.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allan R E 1980 Wheat. In Hybridization of Crop Plants. Eds. WR Fehr and HH Hadley. pp 710–721. American Society of Agronomy and Crop Science Society of America. Madison, Wisconsin, USA.
Bobbie R J and White D C 1980 Characterization of benthic microbial community structure by high-resolution gas chromatography of fatty acid methyl esters. Appl. Environ. Microbial. 39, 1212–1222.
Brussaard L, Bouwman L, Geurs M, Hassink J and Zwart K B 1990 Biomass, composition and temporal dynamics of soil organisms of a silt loam soil under conventional and integrated management. Neth. J. Agri. Sci. 38, 283–302.
Butkevich V S 1932 Zur Methodik der Bakteriologischen Meeresuntersuchungen und einige Angaben über die Verteilung der Bakterien im Wasser und in dem Boden des Barents Meeres. Trans. Oceanogr. Inst. (Moscow) 2, 5–9.
Cavigelli M A, Robertson P G and Klug M J 1995 Fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) profiles as measures of soil microbial community structure. Plant Soil 170, 99–113.
Cook R J 1968 Fusarium root rot and foot rot of cereals in the Pacific Northwest. Phytopathology 58, 127–131.
Dickinson B 1985 Mikrobiologisches Handbuch Becton Dickinson GmbH, Heidelberg. 70 p.
Dubin H J and Rajaram S 1996 Breeding disease-resistant wheat for tropical highlands and lowlands. Annu. Rev. Phytopathol. 34, 503–526.
Goodman R M, Bintrim S B, Handelsman J, Quarino B F and Rosas J C 1998 A dirty look: Soil microflora and rhizosphere microbiology. In Radicle Biology: Advances and Perspectives on the Function of Plant Roots. Eds. HE Flores, JP Lynch and J Shanon. pp 219–234. Rockville, MD: Am. Soc. Plant Physiol.
Grosskopf R, Stubner S and Liesack W 1998 Novel euryarchaeotal lineages detected on rice roots and in the anoxic bulk soil of flooded rice microcosms. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 64, 4983–4989.
Haack S K, Garchow H, Odelson D L, Forney L J and Klug MJ 1994 Accuracy, reproducibility and interpretation of fatty acid methyl ester profiles of model bacterial communities. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 60, 2483–2493.
Janzen R A, Raverkar K P, Rutherford P M and McGill W B 1994 Decreasing amounts of extractable phospholipid-linked fatty acids in a soil during decline in numbers of pseudomonas. Can. J. Soil Sci. 74, 277–284.
Jantzen E 1984 Analysis of cellular components in bacterial classification and diagnosis. In Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry Application in Microbiology. Eds. G Odahm, L Larsson L and PA Mard. pp 257–302. Plenum Press, New York.
Kennedy A C and Smith K L 1995 Soil microbial diversity and the sustainability of agricultural soils. Plant Soil 170, 75–86.
Kielwein G 1971 Die Isolierung und Differenzierung von Pseudomonaden aus Lebensmitteln Arch. f. Lebensmittelhyg 22, 29–37.
Microbial ID Inc. 1992 Microbial identification system operating manual, version 4. Newark, DE, USA.
Moss C W 1981 Gas-liquid chromatography as an analytical tool in microbiology. J. Chrom. 203, 337–347.
Moss C W, Dees S B and Guerrant G O 1980 Gas-liquid chromatography of bacterial fatty acids with a fused-silica capillary column. J. Clin. Microbiol. 12, 127–130.
Oerke E C, Dehne H-W, Schoenbeck F and Weber A 1994 Crop Production and Crop Protection: Estimated Losses inMajor Food and Cash Crops. Elsevier, Amsterdam. 808 p.
O'Leary W M and Wilkinson S G 1988 Gram-positive bacteria. In Microbial Lipids Vol 1. Eds. C Ratledge and SG Wilkinson. pp 117–201. Academic Press, London.
Preston G M, Haubold B and Rainey P B 1998 Bacterial genomics and adaptation to life on plants: Implications for the evolution of pathogenicity and symbiosis. Curr. Opin. Microbiol. 1, 589–597.
Romesburg H C 1984 Clustering methods. In Cluster Analysis for Researchers. Ed. K Sargent. pp 119–141. Lifetime Learning Publications. Belmont, California, USA.
Smith K P and Goodman R M 1999 Host variation for interactions with beneficial plant-associated microbes. Annu. Rev. Phytopathol. 37, 473–491.
Smith K P, Handelsman J and Goodman R M 1999 Genetic basis in plants for interactions with disease-suppressive bacteria. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 96, 4786–4790.
Statgraphic Plus, version 3.1. 1997 Statgraphic for experimental designs and multivariate methods. Manugistics, Inc. USA. 295 p.
Thomashow L S, Weller D M, Bonsall R F and Pierson III L S 1990 Production of the antibiotic phenazine-1-carboxylic acid by fluorescent Pseudomonas species in the rhizosphere of wheat. Appl. Environ. Micobiol. 56, 908–912.
Tinline R D and Ledingham R J 1979 Yields losses in wheat and barley cultivars from common root rot in field tests. Can J. Plant Sci. 59, 313–320.
Tunlid A, Hoitink H A J, Low C and White D C 1989 Characterization of bacteria that suppress Rhizoctonia damping-off in bark compost media by analysis of fatty acid biomarkers. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 55, 1368–1374.
Vestal J R and White D C 1989 Lipid analysis in microbial ecology. Bioscience 39, 535–541.
Vilich V and Sikora R A 1998 Diversity in soil-borne microbial communities — a tool for biological system management of root health. In Plant Microbes Interactions and Biological Control. Eds. GJ Boland and Kuykendall. pp 1–14. Marcel Dekker Inc, New York.
Wandler M M, Hedrick D S, Kaufman D, Traina S J, Stinner B R, Kehrmeyer S R and White D C 1995 The functional significance of the microbial biomass in organic and conventionally managed soils. Plant Soil 170, 87–97.
Weller D M 1988 Biological control of soilborne plant pathogens in the rhizosphere with bacteria. Annu. Rev. Phytopathol. 26, 379–407.
White D C 1983 Analysis of micro-organisms in terms of quantity and activity in natural environments. In Microbes in Their Natural Environments. Eds. JH Slater, R Whittenbury and JWT Wimpenny. pp 37–66. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.
Wilkinson S G 1988. Gram-negative bacteria. In Microbial Lipids. Vol. 1. Eds. C Ratledge and SG Wilkinson. pp 299–488. Academic Press, London.
Zelles L and Bai Q Y 1993 Fractionation of fatty acids derived from the soil lipids by solid phase extraction and their quantitative analysis by GC-MS. Soil Biol. Biochem. 25, 495–507.
Zelles L, Rackwitz R, Bai Q Y, Beck T and Beese F 1995 Discrimination of microbial diversity by fatty acids profiles of phospholipids and lipopolysaccharides in differently cultivated soils. Plant Soil. 170, 115–122.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Diab El Arab, H.G., Vilich, V. & Sikora, R.A. The use of phospholipid fatty acids (PL-FA) in the determination of rhizosphere specific microbial communities (RSMC) of two wheat cultivars. Plant and Soil 228, 291–297 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004814229653
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1004814229653