Abstract
Soil salinity is an increasing problem facing agriculture in many parts of the world. Climate change and irrigation practices have led to decreased yields of some farmland due to increased salt levels in the soil. Plants that have tolerance to salt are thus needed to feed the world’s population. One approach addressing this problem is genetic engineering to introduce genes encoding salinity, but this approach has limitations. Another fairly new approach is the isolation and development of salt-tolerant (halophilic) plant-associated bacteria. These bacteria are used as inoculants to stimulate plant growth. Several reports are now available, demonstrating how the use of halophilic inoculants enhance plant growth in salty soil. However, the mechanisms for this growth stimulation are as yet not clear. Enhanced growth in response to bacterial inoculation is expected to be associated with changes in plant gene expression. In this review, we discuss the current literature and approaches for analyzing altered plant gene expression in response to inoculation with halophilic bacteria. Additionally, challenges and limitations to current approaches are analyzed. A further understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in enhanced plant growth when inoculated with salt-tolerant bacteria will significantly improve agriculture in areas affected by saline soils.
Highlights
ST-plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) strains from the microbiome of native Utah halophytes, when added to salty soil containing non-salttolerant Medicago sativa seedlings, reportedly increased plant yield when compared to controls [1]
In the studies discussed below, we focus on the analysis of differential gene expression in response to the inoculation of plants with halophilic bacteria, compared to uninoculated plants, grown in salty soil
Photosynthesis is reduced in plants under salinity stress, while inoculation with Salttolerance-related tolerance-related plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (ST-PGPR) often results in increases in photosynthesis, as discussed in this review
Summary
The rate of soil salinization is influenced by many factors, including the practice of poor irrigation techniques and local climates. Salinity causes several negative effects on plant growth and development due to water stress, cytotoxicity from elevated levels of sodium and chloride ions in the cytoplasm, nutritional imbalance, the production of ethylene, reactive oxygen species and other oxidative damage. These disruptions can seriously affect plant productivity [1,2].
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