GNPS - Metabolic barriers controlling root microbiota assembly

Plant roots are an essential plant organ, which is functionally related to nutrient and water uptake. These functions are conditioned by their morphology since water and nutrients infiltrate the root from the soil through different tissue layers to reach the central vasculature. We have revealed that microbial composition affects root morphology complexity. Importantly, we also found that the presence of the microbiota changes morphological traits in the root under low nutrient conditions, suggesting an unexplored coordination between root morphology complexity and microbial communities with consequences for plant health. Using Synthetic Communities (Syncom), we identified three bacteria that are capable of modifying plant root morphogenesis. So, in this experiment, we exposed duckweed plants to a bacterial Syncom as well as three alternative Syncoms, each of which excludedimportant bacteria. Additionally, we also exposed the plants to single bacteria.

The work (proposal:https://doi.org/10.46936/10.25585/60012307) conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (https://ror.org/04xm1d337), a DOE Office of Science User Facility, is supported by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy operated under Contract No. DE-AC02-05CH11231.