The ecological roles of Bacillus thuringiensis within phyllosphere environments.

Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is one of the most used bio-control agents to control plant insects, but little is known about its effect on the microbial population and communities on plant leaves. With the culture dependent method, it has been observed that the dynamics of Bt within the phyllosphere varied dependent on both the doses of Bt sprayed on the leaves and the plant species, however, Bt's population size kept stable at about 1000 cfu g(-1) after 15 d since inoculation. By comparing the bacterial abundances and community structures within the phyllosphere of three plant species, we confirmed that Bt at the doses of 1.