Prospecting of Bacterial Endophytes Imparting Salinity Stress Tolerance and Plant Growth Promotion in Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum)

Author: Tasmiya Imtiyaz and Earanna N.

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Abstract

Salinity is a severe abiotic factor that harms plant growth and productivity. In recent years, it has been clear that there are microorganisms (fungi and bacteria) that could coexist symbiotically with plants and provide tolerance to abiotic stress. In the current investigation, 58 bacterial endophytes that were isolated from the cold deserts of the Himalayas were in-vitro tested for salinity resistance using different concentrations of NaCl. Nine of the 58 isolates demonstrated tolerance to salinity up to 2.0 M NaCl. After further investigation, it was discovered that the isolates could fix solubilize substances such phosphate, HCN, NH3, siderophore, proline, IAA, gibberellic acid, abscisic acid, and salicylic acid. Additionally, pre-germinated seeds of Tomato (var. Arka Saurabh) seedlings were tested using a standardization of NaCl (117mM) in paper towel. in which two endophytes (NBE 20 and NBE 23) significantly increased seedling length compared to uninoculated seeds. The endophytes were identified as Enterobacter cloacae and Enterobacter asburiae by 16S rRNA gene sequence. In greenhouse studies, inoculation with Enterobacter asburiae significantly increased the plant growth attributes at 4 dS m-1 NaCl, followed by Enterobacter cloacae in comparison to control plants. Hence, the present study manifests theses isolate as the potent bacterial endophytes in imparting salt tolerance and growth promotion in Tomato.

Keywords

Bacterial endophytes, NaCl, Tomato (var. Arka saurabh), Enterobacter cloacae, Enterobacter asburiae

Conclusion

Therefore, presence of inoculated bacterial endophytes within inoculated plants were confirmed through re-isolation. Hence, this study suggests the inoculation of endophytes is necessary to confer salinity tolerance. Furthermore, it can be conferred that out of two bacterial endophytes, Enterobacter asburiae collected from harsh condition presented superior salinity tolerance to tomato plant under salt stress and these findings can be explored in other agricultural crops.

References

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How to cite this article

Tasmiya Imtiyaz and Earanna N. (2023). Prospecting of Bacterial Endophytes Imparting Salinity Stress Tolerance and Plant Growth Promotion in Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). Biological Forum – An International Journal, 15(8a): 273-284.