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Article

PGPR-Mediated Salt Tolerance in Maize by Modulating Plant Physiology, Antioxidant Defense, Compatible Solutes Accumulation and Bio-Surfactant Producing Genes

by
Baber Ali
1,
Xiukang Wang
2,*,
Muhammad Hamzah Saleem
3,
Sumaira
4,
Aqsa Hafeez
1,
Muhammad Siddique Afridi
5,
Shahid Khan
6,7,
Zaib-Un-Nisa
8,
Izhar Ullah
1,
Antônio Teixeira do Amaral Júnior
7,
Aishah Alatawi
9 and
Shafaqat Ali
10,11,*
1
Department of Plant Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad 45320, Pakistan
2
College of Life Sciences, Yan’an University, Yan’an 716000, China
3
College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan 430070, China
4
Department of Biotechnology, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad 45320, Pakistan
5
Department of Plant Pathology, Federal University of Lavras (UFLA), Lavras 37200-900, MG, Brazil
6
Department of Agriculture, University of Swabi, Ambar, Swabi 94640, Pakistan
7
Laboratório de Melhoramento Genético Vegetal, Centro de Ciências e Tecnologias Agropecuárias, Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense Darcy Ribeiro (UENF), Campos dos Goytacazes 28013-602, RJ, Brazil
8
Cotton Research Institute, Multan 60000, Pakistan
9
Biology Department, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk 71421, Saudi Arabia
10
Department of Environmental Sciences, Government College University, Faisalabad 38000, Pakistan
11
Department of Biological Sciences and Technology, China Medical University, Taichung 40402, Taiwan
 
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Plants 2022, 11(3), 345; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11030345
Submission received: 11 December 2021 / Revised: 20 January 2022 / Accepted: 21 January 2022 / Published: 27 January 2022
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Plants for Extreme and Changing Environments: Domestication, Evolution, Crop Breeding and Genetics)
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Abstract

Salinity stress is a barrier to crop production, quality yield, and sustainable agriculture. The current study investigated the plant growth promotion, biochemical and molecular characterization of bacterial strain Enterobacter cloacae PM23 under salinity stress (i.e., 0, 300, 600, and 900 mM). E. cloacae PM23 showed tolerance of up to 3 M NaCl when subjected to salinity stress. Antibiotic-resistant Iturin C (ItuC) and bio-surfactant-producing genes (sfp and srfAA) were amplified in E. cloacae PM23, indicating its multi-stress resistance potential under biotic and abiotic stresses. Moreover, the upregulation of stress-related genes (APX and SOD) helped to mitigate salinity stress and improved plant growth. Inoculation of E. cloacae PM23 enhanced plant growth, biomass, and photosynthetic pigments under salinity stress. Bacterial strain E. cloacae PM23 showed distinctive salinity tolerance and plant growth-promoting traits such as indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), siderophore, ACC deaminase, and exopolysaccharides production under salinity stress. To alleviate salinity stress, E. cloacae PM23 inoculation enhanced radical scavenging capacity, relative water content, soluble sugars, proteins, total phenolic, and flavonoid content in maize compared to uninoculated (control) plants. Moreover, elevated levels of antioxidant enzymes and osmoprotectants (Free amino acids, glycine betaine, and proline) were noticed in E. cloacae PM23 inoculated plants compared to control plants. The inoculation of E. cloacae PM23 significantly reduced oxidative stress markers under salinity stress. These findings suggest that multi-stress tolerant E. cloacae PM23 could enhance plant growth by mitigating salt stress and provide a baseline and ecofriendly approach to address salinity stress for sustainable agriculture.
Keywords: abiotic stresses; agriculture; halo-tolerant bacteria; plant-microbe interactions; salinity stress abiotic stresses; agriculture; halo-tolerant bacteria; plant-microbe interactions; salinity stress

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MDPI and ACS Style

Ali, B.; Wang, X.; Saleem, M.H.; Sumaira; Hafeez, A.; Afridi, M.S.; Khan, S.; Zaib-Un-Nisa; Ullah, I.; Amaral Júnior, A.T.d.; et al. PGPR-Mediated Salt Tolerance in Maize by Modulating Plant Physiology, Antioxidant Defense, Compatible Solutes Accumulation and Bio-Surfactant Producing Genes. Plants 2022, 11, 345. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11030345

AMA Style

Ali B, Wang X, Saleem MH, Sumaira, Hafeez A, Afridi MS, Khan S, Zaib-Un-Nisa, Ullah I, Amaral Júnior ATd, et al. PGPR-Mediated Salt Tolerance in Maize by Modulating Plant Physiology, Antioxidant Defense, Compatible Solutes Accumulation and Bio-Surfactant Producing Genes. Plants. 2022; 11(3):345. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11030345

Chicago/Turabian Style

Ali, Baber, Xiukang Wang, Muhammad Hamzah Saleem, Sumaira, Aqsa Hafeez, Muhammad Siddique Afridi, Shahid Khan, Zaib-Un-Nisa, Izhar Ullah, Antônio Teixeira do Amaral Júnior, and et al. 2022. "PGPR-Mediated Salt Tolerance in Maize by Modulating Plant Physiology, Antioxidant Defense, Compatible Solutes Accumulation and Bio-Surfactant Producing Genes" Plants 11, no. 3: 345. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11030345

APA Style

Ali, B., Wang, X., Saleem, M. H., Sumaira, Hafeez, A., Afridi, M. S., Khan, S., Zaib-Un-Nisa, Ullah, I., Amaral Júnior, A. T. d., Alatawi, A., & Ali, S. (2022). PGPR-Mediated Salt Tolerance in Maize by Modulating Plant Physiology, Antioxidant Defense, Compatible Solutes Accumulation and Bio-Surfactant Producing Genes. Plants, 11(3), 345. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11030345

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