Abstract
In the last decade, there has been an increasing focus on the implementation of plant growth-promoting (PGP) organisms as a sustainable option to compensate for poor soil fertility conditions in developing countries. Trap systems were used in an effort to isolate PGP fungi from rhizospheric soil samples collected in the region around Kisangani in the Democratic Republic of Congo. With sudangrass as a host, a highly conducive environment was created for sebacinalean chlamydospore formation inside the plant roots resulting in a collection of 51 axenically cultured isolates of the elusive genus Piriformospora (recently transferred to the genus Serendipita). Based on morphological data, ISSR fingerprinting profiles and marker gene sequences, we propose that these isolates together with Piriformospora williamsii constitute a species complex designated Piriformospora (= Serendipita) ‘williamsii.’ A selection of isolates strongly promoted plant growth of in vitro inoculated Arabidopsis seedlings, which was evidenced by an increase in shoot fresh weight and a strong stimulation of lateral root formation. This isolate collection provides unprecedented opportunities for fundamental as well as translational research on the Serendipitaceae, a family of fungal endophytes in full expansion.
Highlights
Worldwide, but in developing countries, food security is threatened both by a growing population and by climate change
Since the access to mineral fertilizers in developing regions is very restricted, a sustainable intensification of land use can be addressed through the application of an integrated soil fertility management approach (ISFM), defined by Vanlauwe et al (2010) as ‘a set of management practices that necessarily include the use of fertilizer, organic inputs and improved germplasm, combined with the knowledge on how to adapt these practices to local conditions, aiming at maximizing agronomic efficiency.’
To screen the sampled rhizospheric soils for the presence of plant growth-promoting (PGP) fungi, a soil-based trap system was used in combination with maize, rice, soybean, and sudangrass as hosts (Figure 1B), four crops that are abundantly cultivated in sub-Saharan Africa
Summary
But in developing countries, food security is threatened both by a growing population and by climate change. Since the access to mineral fertilizers in developing regions is very restricted, a sustainable intensification of land use can be addressed through the application of an integrated soil fertility management approach (ISFM), defined by Vanlauwe et al (2010) as ‘a set of management practices that necessarily include the use of fertilizer, organic inputs and improved germplasm, combined with the knowledge on how to adapt these practices to local conditions, aiming at maximizing agronomic efficiency.’. The rhizosphere is populated by a diverse range of bacteria and fungi that positively influence plant growth. The implementation or stimulation of these indigenous plant growth-promoting (PGP) micro-organisms fits within the ISFM concept, but may require the development of Congolese Extension of the Genus Piriformospora proficient inocula via isolation and propagation of the most effective microbes (Sanginga and Woomer, 2009; Bender et al, 2016). Ubiquitous endophytes appear to be arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), dark septate endophytes (DSE), and Sebacinales (Blaalid et al, 2012; Detheridge et al, 2016), all exerting specific interactions with their hosts
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