Exploring Drought Tolerance in PGPR-Protected Wheat Plants Through Physiological and Molecular Expression
摘要
Osmotic stress exposure adversely affects wheat growth leading to early maturity along with compromised yield. The adverse effects could be partially overcome by seed biopriming with potential PGPR strains Pseudomonas azotoformans JRBHU5, Burkholderia seminalis JRBHU6, and consortia (Pseudomonas azotoformans JRBHU5 + Enterobacter hormaechei JRBHU9) isolated during the study. PGPR with good IAA, EPS, and ACC-D producing capabilities performed better than other bacterial strains. Inoculation of PGPR in wheat plants exposed to osmotic stress significantly strengthened the proline and lignin contents and antioxidant defense system to protect wheat plants against oxidative stress. To combat the oxidative and osmotic stress that frequently occurs during water shortage, PGPR enhances the plants RWC by maintaining soil moisture in the rhizosphere of inoculated plants. The selected bacterial strains were good exopolysaccharide producers which formed a thick biofilm over the root surface helpful in maintaining moisture even under drought. Among all the PGPR strains tested JRBHU5 was most effective in inducing osmotic tolerance in wheat bringing yields comparable to the irrigated control plants.