Rhizosphere-specific bacterial community structure and activity in long-term contaminated soil

In this study, soil contaminated with PCBs was vegetated by different plant species, horseradish (Armoracia rusticana), black nightshade (Solanum nigrum), and tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum). The aim was to investigate the influence of these plants on both phylogenetic and metabolic diversity of rhizosphere populations and associated decrease of PCBs in the rhizospheres. In addition to plants themselves, the influence of fertilizing on the viability of plants, richness of rhizosphere microorganisms, and decrease of PCB content in soil was determined.