Pseudomonas citronellolis alleviates arsenic toxicity and maintains cellular homeostasis in chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.).

Arsenic is a hazardous metalloid that causes detrimental effects on plant growth and metabolism. Plants accumulate arsenic in edible parts that consequently enter the food chain leading to many health problems. Metal tolerant plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) ameliorate heavy metal toxicity. In this study, the effect of arsenic (As) and the role of PGPB Pseudomonas citronellolis (PC) in mitigating As toxicity and associated metabolic alterations in chickpea were assessed. Five chickpea varieties (PBG1, GPF2, PDG3, PDG4 and PBG5) were evaluated for arsenic accumulation, translocation, and its interference with metabolic and defense processes. As (40 mg kg) interfered with plant metabolism and enhanced the antioxidative and carbohydrate metabolizing enzyme's activity but PC treatment maintained the activity at par with control. PC also facilitated the accumulation of As in the root system and restricted its translocation to the shoot. Further, to map the metabolic changes, Gas chromatography Mass Spectroscopy (GC-MS) based metabolite profiling and gene expression analysis (qRT-PCR) were performed in the best and worst-performing chickpea varieties (PBG1 and PBG5). 48 metabolites of various metabolic pathways (amino acid, carbohydrate, and fatty acid) were altered in As and PC treatment. Gene expressions showed correlation with biochemical analysis of the antioxidative enzymes and carbohydrate metabolizing enzymes while PC treatment improved chlorophyll biosynthesis enzyme CaDALA expression in As treated plants. Therefore, PC mitigates As toxicity by restricting it in the roots thereby maintaining the cellular homeostasis under As stress in chickpeas.