Microbe-Friendly Plants Enable Beneficial Interactions with Soil Rhizosphere Bacteria by Lowering Their Defense Responses.

The use of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria presents a promising addition to conventional mineral fertilizer use and an alternative strategy for sustainable agricultural crop production. However, genotypic variations in the plant host may result in variability of the beneficial effects from these plant-microbe interactions. This study examined growth promotion effects of commercial vegetable crop cultivars of tomato, cucumber and broccoli following application with five rhizosphere bacteria.

Validation of PCR Diagnostic Assays for Detection and Identification of All Sequevars Causing Moko Disease in Banana.

Moko disease in banana is a bacterial wilt caused by strains within sensu stricto. The disease is endemic to Central and South America but has spread to the Philippines and peninsular Malaysia. Detecting new incursions early in Moko-free banana production regions is of utmost importance for containment and eradication, as Moko management significantly increases costs in banana production.

Customized plant microbiome engineering for food security.

Plant microbiomes play a vital role in promoting plant growth and resilience to cope with environmental stresses. Plant microbiome engineering holds significant promise to increase crop yields, but there is uncertainty about how this can best be achieved. We propose a step-by-step approach involving customized direct and indirect methods to condition soils and to match plants and microbiomes.

Transmission of Blood Disease in Banana.

Banana Blood disease is a bacterial wilt caused by subsp. and is an economically important disease in Indonesia and Malaysia. Transmission of this pathogen is hypothesized to occur through insects mechanically transferring bacteria from diseased to healthy banana inflorescences and other pathways involving pruning tools, water movement, and root-to-root contact.

Rhizosphere bacteria induce programmed cell death defence genes and signalling in chilli pepper.

Aim: To understand how beneficial bacteria assist chilli plants (Capsicum annuum) in defence against biotrophic or hemibiotrophic pathogens.

Method And Results: We quantified marker genes of plant defence pathways in Phytophthora capsici-infected chilli pepper treated with anti-oomycete plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, Bacillus velezensis and Acinetobacter sp. Plants displayed strong resistance, and the pathogen load in the roots was significantly lower in infected plants treated with bacterial biocontrol agents at all time points tested (1, 2 and 7 days after pathogen inoculation, p < 0.

Simple solution to preserve plant samples for microbiome analyses.

Culture-independent survey techniques are fundamental tools when assessing plant microbiomes. These methods rely on DNA that is carefully preserved after collecting samples to achieve meaningful results. Immediately freezing samples to -80°C after collection is considered one of the most robust methods for preserving samples before DNA extraction but is often impractical.

Diagnostics of Banana Blood Disease.

Blood disease in bananas caused by subsp. is a bacterial wilt disease that causes major yield losses of banana in Indonesia and peninsular Malaysia. The disease has significantly increased its geographic distribution in the past decade.

Susceptibility of the Banana Inflorescence to Blood Disease.

The bacterium subsp. causes Blood disease of banana, a vascular wilt of economic significance in Indonesia and Malaysia. Blood disease has expanded its geographic range in the last 20 years and is an emerging threat to Southeast Asian banana production.

Geographic Expansion of Banana Blood Disease in Southeast Asia.

Blood disease in bananas caused by subsp. is a bacterial wilt causing significant crop losses in Indonesia and Malaysia. Disease symptoms include wilting of the plant and red-brown vascular staining, internal rot, and discoloration of green banana fruit.

Plant-produced bacteriocins inhibit plant pathogens and confer disease resistance in tomato.

Bacteriocins are a diverse group of bacterial antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) that represent potential replacements for current antibiotics due to their novel modes of action. At present, production costs are a key constraint to the use of bacteriocins and other AMPs. Here, we report the production of bacteriocins in planta - a potentially scalable and cost-effective approach for AMP production.

Sample Preparation for Culture-Independent Profiling and Isolation of Phyllosphere Bacteria to Identify Potential Biopesticides.

Studying the plant phyllosphere to understand inhibition patterns to the growth of fungal foliar pathogens by using the Arabidopsis thaliana pathosystem offers unique opportunities for evaluating strategies for plant protection against foliar diseases. The wide array of bacteria inhabiting the phylloplane of plants has been researched to a much lesser extent compared to the bacteria in the rhizosphere. This difference is especially evident as bacteria derived from the aerial section of plants are rarely used in formulations of foliage sprays against pathogens and pests.

Evidence for the plant recruitment of beneficial microbes to suppress soil-borne pathogens.

An emerging experimental framework suggests that plants under biotic stress may actively seek help from soil microbes, but empirical evidence underlying such a 'cry for help' strategy is limited. We used integrated microbial community profiling, pathogen and plant transcriptive gene quantification and culture-based methods to systematically investigate a three-way interaction between the wheat plant, wheat-associated microbiomes and Fusarium pseudograminearum (Fp). A clear enrichment of a dominant bacterium, Stenotrophomonas rhizophila (SR80), was observed in both the rhizosphere and root endosphere of Fp-infected wheat.

Draft Genome of the Macadamia Husk Spot Pathogen, .

causes husk spot in macadamia in Australia. Lack of genomic resources for this pathogen has restricted acquiring knowledge on the mechanism of disease development, spread, and its role in fruit abscission. To address this gap, we sequenced the genome of .

Development of plant-based emulsion formulations to control bacterial leaf blight and sheath brown rot of rice.

Bacterial leaf blight (BLB) and sheath brown rot (SBR), caused by pv. (Xoo) and , respectively, are bacterial diseases that lead to substantial yield losses in rice. Natural plant-based products represent a sustainable alternative to combat bacterial diseases due to their biodegradability and overall safety.

Soil bacterial diffusible and volatile organic compounds inhibit Phytophthora capsici and promote plant growth.

Biotic interactions through diffusible and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are frequent in nature. Soil bacteria are well-known producers of a wide range of volatile compounds (both organic and inorganic) with various biologically relevant activities. Since the last decade, they have been identified as natural biocontrol agents.

Molecular Diagnostics of Banana Fusarium Wilt Targeting Genes.

Fusarium wilt is currently spreading in banana growing regions around the world leading to substantial losses. The disease is caused by the fungus f. sp.

Soil amendments with ethylene precursor alleviate negative impacts of salinity on soil microbial properties and productivity.

Some microbes enhance stress tolerance in plants by minimizing plant ethylene levels via degradation of its immediate precursor, 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate (ACC), in the rhizosphere. In return, ACC is used by these microbes as a source of nitrogen. This mutualistic relationship between plants and microbes may be used to promote soil properties in stressful environments.

Complete Genome Sequence of Achromobacter spanius UQ283, a Soilborne Isolate Exhibiting Plant Growth-Promoting Properties.

UQ283 is a soilborne bacterium found to exhibit plant growth-promoting and disease-suppressing attributes in several plant species. Accordingly, we used long-read sequencing to determine its complete genome sequence. The assembled genome will aid in understanding the multifaceted interactions between plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria, pathogens, and plants.

Identification of Soil Bacterial Isolates Suppressing Different spp. and Promoting Plant Growth.

Bacterial isolates obtained from the rhizosphere of and a plantless compost potting mix was screened for anti-oomycete activity against , , , and . Three out of 48 isolates exhibited more than 65% inhibition against all tested species and were selected for further studies. These strains, named UQ154, UQ156, and UQ202, are closely related to , , and sp.

Inner Plant Values: Diversity, Colonization and Benefits from Endophytic Bacteria.

One of the most exciting scientific advances in recent decades has been the realization that the diverse and immensely active microbial communities are not only 'passengers' with plants, but instead play an important role in plant growth, development and resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses. A picture is emerging where plant roots act as 'gatekeepers' to screen soil bacteria from the rhizosphere and rhizoplane. This typically results in root endophytic microbiome dominated by Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria and to a lesser extent Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes, but Acidobacteria and Gemmatimonadetes being almost depleted.

Complete Nucleotide Sequence of Australian Isolate TSWV-QLD2.

The complete nucleotide (nt) sequence of an Australian isolate of was determined by deep RNA sequencing and deep small RNA sequencing. The tripartite genome consists of an 8,914-nt L segment, a 4,851-nt M segment, and a 2,987-nt S segment.

An Optimized Transient Dual Luciferase Assay for Quantifying MicroRNA Directed Repression of Targeted Sequences.

Studies investigating the action of small RNAs on computationally predicted target genes require some form of experimental validation. Classical molecular methods of validating microRNA action on target genes are laborious, while approaches that tag predicted target sequences to qualitative reporter genes encounter technical limitations. The aim of this study was to address the challenge of experimentally validating large numbers of computationally predicted microRNA-target transcript interactions using an optimized, quantitative, cost-effective, and scalable approach.

Jasmonic acid signalling and the plant holobiont.

The plant holobiont - which is the plant and its associated microbiome - is increasingly viewed as an evolving entity. Some interacting microbes that compose the microbiome assist plants in combating pathogens and herbivorous insects. However, knowledge of the factors that influence the microbiome in the context of defence signalling pathways is still in its infancy.

Strategic tillage in conservation agricultural systems of north-eastern Australia: why, where, when and how?

Farmers often resort to an occasional tillage (strategic tillage (ST)) operation to combat constraints of no-tillage (NT) farming systems. There are conflicting reports regarding impacts of ST and a lack of knowledge around when, where and how ST is implemented to maximise its benefits without impacting negatively on soil and environment. We established 14 experiments during 2012-2015 on farms with long-term history of continuous NT to (i) quantify the associated risks and benefits to crop productivity, soil and environmental health and (ii) explore key factors that need to be considered in decisions to implement ST in an otherwise NT system.

Effects of jasmonic acid signalling on the wheat microbiome differ between body sites.

Jasmonic acid (JA) signalling helps plants to defend themselves against necrotrophic pathogens and herbivorous insects and has been shown to influence the root microbiome of Arabidopsis thaliana. In this study, we determined whether JA signalling influences the diversity and functioning of the wheat (Triticum aestivum) microbiome and whether these effects are specific to particular parts of the plant. Activation of the JA pathway was achieved via exogenous application of methyl jasmonate and was confirmed by significant increases in the abundance of 10 JA-signalling-related gene transcripts.