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Trichoderma-amended biofertilizer stimulates soil resident Aspergillus population for joint plant growth promotion.

ABSTRACT: Application of plant growth-promoting microbes (PGPMs) can contribute to sustainable agricultural ecosystems. From a three-year field experiment, we already found that the addition of Trichoderma bio-organic fertilizer (BF) significantly improved crop growth and yield compared to the application of organic fertilizer (OF). Here, we tracked the responses of soil bacterial and fungal communities to these treatments to find the key soil microbial taxa that contribute to the crop yield enhancement. We also examined if bacterial and fungal suspensions from resulting soils could improve plant growth upon inoculation into sterilized soil. Lastly, we isolated a number of fungal strains related to populations affected by treatments to examine their role in plant growth promotion. Results showed that consecutive application of BF impacted soil fungal communities, and the biological nature of plant growth promotion was confirmed via pot experiments using γ-sterilized versus none-sterilized soils collected from the field. Soil slurry experiments suggested that fungal, but not bacterial communities, played an important role in plant growth promotion, consistent with the results of our field experimental data. Fungal community analysis of both field and slurry experimental soils revealed increases in specific resident Aspergillus spp. Interestingly, Aspergillus tamarii showed no plant growth promotion by itself, but strongly increased the growth promotion activity of the Trichoderma amendment strain upon their co-inoculation. The effectiveness of the fungal amendment appears to stem not only from its own action, but also from synergetic interactions with resident fungal populations activated upon biofertilizer application.

SUBMITTER: Hang X

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9279317 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:Biofertilizers have immense potential for enhancing agricultural productivity. However, there is still a need for clarification regarding the specific mechanisms through which these biofertilizers improve soil properties and stimulate plant growth. In this research, a bacterial agent was utilized to enhance plant growth and investigate the microbial modulation mechanism of soil nutrient turnover using metagenomic technology. The results demonstrated a significant increase in soil fast-acting nitrogen (by 46.7%) and fast-acting phosphorus (by 88.6%) upon application of the bacterial agent. This finding suggests that stimulated soil microbes contribute to enhanced nutrient transformation, ultimately leading to improved plant growth. Furthermore, the application of the bacterial agent had a notable impact on the accumulation of key genes involved in nitrogen cycling. Notably, it enhanced nitrification genes (amo, hao, and nar), while denitrification genes (nir and nor) showed a slight decrease. This indicates that ammonium oxidation may be the primary pathway for increasing fast-acting nitrogen in soils. Additionally, the bacterial agent influenced the composition and functional structure of the soil microbial community. Moreover, the metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) obtained from the soil microbial communities exhibited complementary metabolic processes, suggesting mutual nutrient exchange. These MAGs contained widely distributed and highly abundant genes encoding plant growth promotion (PGP) traits. These findings emphasize how soil microbial communities can enhance vegetation growth by increasing nutrient availability and regulating plant hormone production. This effect can be further enhanced by introducing inoculated microbial agents. In conclusion, this study provides novel insights into the mechanisms underlying the beneficial effects of biofertilizers on soil properties and plant growth. The significant increase in nutrient availability, modulation of key genes involved in nitrogen cycling, and the presence of MAGs encoding PGP traits highlight the potential of biofertilizers to improve agricultural practices. These findings have important implications for enhancing agricultural sustainability and productivity, with positive societal and environmental impacts.

Project description:In grasslands, forage and livestock production results in soil nutrient deficits as grasslands typically receive no nutrient inputs, leading to a loss of grassland biomass. The application of mature compost has been shown to effectively increase grassland nutrient availability. However, research on fertilization regime influence and potential microbial ecological regulation mechanisms are rarely conducted in grassland soil. We conducted a two-year experiment in meadow steppe grasslands, focusing on above- and belowground consequences of organic or Trichoderma biofertilizer applications and potential soil microbial ecological mechanisms underlying soil chemistry and microbial community responses. Grassland biomass significantly (p = 0.019) increased following amendment with 9,000 kg ha-1 of Trichoderma biofertilizer (composted cattle manure + inoculum) compared with other assessed organic or biofertilizer rates, except for BOF3000 (fertilized with 3,000 kg ha-1 biofertilizer). This rate of Trichoderma biofertilizer treatment increased soil antifungal compounds that may suppress pathogenic fungi, potentially partially responsible for improved grassland biomass. Nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) revealed soil chemistry and fungal communities were all separated by different fertilization regime. Trichoderma biofertilizer (9,000 kg ha-1) increased relative abundances of Archaeorhizomyces and Trichoderma while decreasing Ophiosphaerella. Trichoderma can improve grassland biomass, while Ophiosphaerella has the opposite effect as it may secrete metabolites causing grass necrosis. Correlations between soil properties and microbial genera showed plant-available phosphorus may influence grassland biomass by increasing Archaeorhizomyces and Trichoderma while reducing Ophiosphaerella. According to our structural equation modeling (SEM), Trichoderma abundance was the primary contributor to aboveground grassland biomass. Our results suggest Trichoderma biofertilizer could be an important tool for management of soils and ultimately grassland plant biomass.

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Trichoderma-amended biofertilizer stimulates soil resident Aspergillus population for joint plant growth promotion.

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