Abstract
BackgroundPlant phenology has crucial biological, physical, and chemical effects on the biosphere. Phenological drivers have largely been studied, but the role of plant microbiota, particularly rhizosphere microbiota, has not been considered.ResultsWe discovered that rhizosphere microbial communities could modulate the timing of flowering of Arabidopsis thaliana. Rhizosphere microorganisms that increased and prolonged N bioavailability by nitrification delayed flowering by converting tryptophan to the phytohormone indole acetic acid (IAA), thus downregulating genes that trigger flowering, and stimulating further plant growth. The addition of IAA to hydroponic cultures confirmed this metabolic network.ConclusionsWe document a novel metabolic network in which soil microbiota influenced plant flowering time, thus shedding light on the key role of soil microbiota on plant functioning. This opens up multiple opportunities for application, from helping to mitigate some of the effects of climate change and environmental stress on plants (e.g. abnormal temperature variation, drought, salinity) to manipulating plant characteristics using microbial inocula to increase crop potential.
Highlights
Plant phenology has crucial biological, physical, and chemical effects on the biosphere
We studied the molecular interactions among root exudates, rhizosphere microbiota, and plant physiology in wild-type (Wt) and mutant plants of Arabidopsis thaliana and identified a novel network of molecular interactions linking the nitrogen cycle, the phytohormone indole acetic acid (IAA) produced from Tryptophan (Trp), and the timing of flowering
Rhizosphere microbiota can delay the onset of flowering of Wt Arabidopsis Multiple generations of experimental adaptation/acclimation could be used to observe microbially mediated mechanisms of plant growth and reproduction [24,25,26]
Summary
Plant phenology has crucial biological, physical, and chemical effects on the biosphere. Climate change has altered plant phenology [1, 2] This has crucial biological, physical, and chemical effects on the biosphere and the earth system [3]. These phenological alterations have become a subject of great interest in ecological and environmental sciences. Changes to phenology have been attributed to multiple factors, including warming [4], but the role of plant microbiota and rhizosphere microbiota has not been considered. Exudates may be excess plant products [20, 21], but they can contain signaling and chemoattractant molecules
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