Project description:Root exudates are composed of primary and secondary metabolites known to modulate the rhizosphere microbiota. Glucosinolates are defense compounds present in the Brassicaceae family capable of deterring pathogens, herbivores and biotic stressors in the phyllosphere. In addition, traces of glucosinolates and their hydrolyzed byproducts have been found in the soil, suggesting that these secondary metabolites could play a role in the modulation and establishment of the rhizosphere microbial community associated with this family. We used Arabidopsis thaliana mutant lines with disruptions in the indole glucosinolate pathway, liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing to evaluate how disrupting this pathway affects the root exudate profile of Arabidopsis thaliana, and in turn, impacts the rhizosphere microbial community. Chemical analysis of the root exudates from the wild type Columbia (Col-0), a mutant plant line overexpressing the MYB transcription factor ATR1 (atr1D) which increases glucosinolate production, and the loss-of-function cyp79B2cyp79B3 double mutant line with low levels of glucosinolates confirmed that alterations to the indole glucosinolate biosynthetic pathway shifts the root exudate profile of the plant. We observed changes in the relative abundance of exuded metabolites. Moreover, 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing results provided evidence that the rhizobacterial communities associated with the plant lines used were directly impacted in diversity and community composition. This work provides further information on the involvement of secondary metabolites and their role in modulating the rhizobacterial community. Root metabolites dictate the presence of different bacterial species, including plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria. Our results suggest that alterations in the indole glucosinolate pathway cause disruptions beyond the endogenous levels of the plant, significantly changing the abundance and presence of different metabolites in the root exudates of the plants as well as the microbial rhizosphere community.
Project description:<div>Species-rich plant communities can induce unique soil biotic legacy effects through changing the abundance and composition of soil biota. These soil legacy effects can cause feedbacks to influence plant performance. In addition, soil biota can induce (defensive) secondary metabolites in shoots and roots and thus affect plant-herbivore interactions. We hypothesize that plant diversity-driven soil biotic legacy effects elicit changes in the shoot and root metabolome. <br></div><div><br></div><div>We tested this hypothesis by establishing an experiment with four plant species. We grew plants in a sterile substrate inoculated with soil conditioned by different plant species communities: (1) monocultures of either of the four species, (2) the four species in a mixture, (3) an eight species mixture including all four species, or (4) a sterile inoculum. After at least eight weeks in the field, we estimated shoot herbivory. At the same time, we took root and shoot samples for metabolomics analyses by liquid chromatography quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry. <br></div><div><br></div><div>We found that shoot and root metabolomes of all plants grown in sterile soil differed significantly from those grown in living soil. The plant metabolomes in living soils differed by species and tissue. Across all species, shoots displayed a greater richness of secondary metabolites than roots. The richness of secondary metabolites differed by species and among living soils. The conditioning species richness significantly affected the Shannon diversity of secondary metabolites in Centaurea jacea. Shoot herbivory positively correlated with the richness and Shannon diversity of secondary metabolites in Leucanthemum vulgare. We detected multiple metabolites that together explained up to 88% of the variation in herbivory in the shoots of Centaurea jacea and Plantago lanceolata. <br></div><div><br></div><div>Synthesis: Our findings suggest that plant diversity-driven shifts in soil biota elicit changes in the composition and diversity of shoot and root secondary metabolites. However, these plant responses and their effect on shoot herbivores are species-specific. Tracking changes in plant secondary chemistry in response to soil biotic legacy effects will help to understand the mechanisms that govern species-specific plant-plant and plant-herbivore interactions.</div>
Project description:We conducted a RNA-Seq analysis of MeJA-treated Chinese cabbage leaf transcriptome. Total 14,619,469 sequence reads were generated to produce 27,461 detected genes, among which 1,451 genes were up-regulated and 991 genes were down-regulated as differentially expressed genes (DEGs) (log2 ratio â¥1, false discovery rate â¤0.001). More than 90% of the DEGs (2,278) were between 1.0- and 3.0-fold (log2 ratio). The most highly represented pathways by 1,674 annotated DEGs were related to âmetabolic pathwaysâ (333 members), âribosomeâ (314 members), âbiosynthesis of secondary metabolitesâ (218 members), âplant-pathogen interactionâ (146 members), and âplant hormone signal transductionâ (99 members). Fourteen genes involved in JA biosynthesis pathway were up-regulated. As many as 182 genes for the biosynthesis of several secondary metabolites were induced, and the level of indole glucosinolate was highly increased by MeJA treatment. The genes encoding sugar catabolism and some amino acids synthesis were up-regulated, which could supply structural intermediates and energy for the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. The results demonstrated a high degree of transcriptional complexity with dynamic coordinated changes in global gene expression of Chinese cabbage in response to MeJA treatment. It expands our understanding of the complex molecular events on JA-induced plant resistance and accumulation of secondary metabolites. It also provides a foundation for further studies on the molecular mechanisms of different pathways in other Brassica crops under MeJA treatment. Transcriptomic analysis of MeJA-treated Chinese cabbage leaf
Project description:The rhizosphere is a small region surrounding plant roots that is enriched in biochemicals from root exudates and populated with fungi, nematode, and bacteria. Interaction of rhizosphere organisms with plants is mainly promoted by exudates from the roots. Root exudates contain biochemicals that come from primary and secondary metabolisms of plants. These biochemicals attract microbes, which influence plant nutrition. The rhizosphere bacteria (microbiome) are vital to plant nutrient uptake and influence biotic and abiotic stress and pathogenesis. Pseudomonas is a genus of gammaproteobacteria known for its ubiquitous presence in natural habitats and its striking ecological, metabolic, and biochemical diversity. Within the genus, members of the Pseudomonas fluorescens group are common inhabitants of soil and plant surfaces, and certain strains function in the biological control of plant disease, protecting plants from infection by soilborne and aerial plant pathogens. The soil bacterium Pseudomonas protegens Pf-5 (also known as Pseudomonas fluorescens Pf-5) is a well-characterized biological strain, which is distinguished by its prolific production of the secondary metabolite, pyoverdine. Knowledge of the distribution of P. fluorescens secretory activity around plant roots is very important for understanding the interaction between P. fluorescens and plants and can be achieved by real time tracking of pyoverdine. To achieve the capability of real-time tracking in soil, we have used a structure-switching SELEX strategy to select high affinity ssDNA aptamers with specificity for pyoverdine over other siderophores. Two DNA aptamers were isolated, and their features compared. The aptamers were applied to a nanoporous aluminum oxide biosensor and demonstrated to successfully detect PYO-Pf5. This sensor provides a future opportunity to track the locations around plant roots of P. protegens and to monitor PYO-Pf5 production and movement through the soil.
Project description:We conducted a RNA-Seq analysis of MeJA-treated Chinese cabbage leaf transcriptome. Total 14,619,469 sequence reads were generated to produce 27,461 detected genes, among which 1,451 genes were up-regulated and 991 genes were down-regulated as differentially expressed genes (DEGs) (log2 ratio ≥1, false discovery rate ≤0.001). More than 90% of the DEGs (2,278) were between 1.0- and 3.0-fold (log2 ratio). The most highly represented pathways by 1,674 annotated DEGs were related to “metabolic pathways” (333 members), “ribosome” (314 members), “biosynthesis of secondary metabolites” (218 members), “plant-pathogen interaction” (146 members), and “plant hormone signal transduction” (99 members). Fourteen genes involved in JA biosynthesis pathway were up-regulated. As many as 182 genes for the biosynthesis of several secondary metabolites were induced, and the level of indole glucosinolate was highly increased by MeJA treatment. The genes encoding sugar catabolism and some amino acids synthesis were up-regulated, which could supply structural intermediates and energy for the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. The results demonstrated a high degree of transcriptional complexity with dynamic coordinated changes in global gene expression of Chinese cabbage in response to MeJA treatment. It expands our understanding of the complex molecular events on JA-induced plant resistance and accumulation of secondary metabolites. It also provides a foundation for further studies on the molecular mechanisms of different pathways in other Brassica crops under MeJA treatment.
Project description:Plants are naturally associated with diverse microbial communities, which play significant roles in plant performance, such as growth promotion or fending off pathogens. The roots of Alkanna tinctoria L. are rich in naphthoquinones, particularly the medicinally used chiral compounds alkannin, shikonin and their derivatives. Former studies already have shown that microorganisms may modulate plant metabolism. To further investigate the potential interaction between A. tinctoria and associated microorganisms we performed a greenhouse experiment, in which A. tinctoria plants were grown in the presence of three distinct soil microbiomes. At four defined plant developmental stages we made an in-depth assessment of bacterial and fungal root-associated microbiomes as well as all primary and secondary metabolites. Our results showed that the plant developmental stage was the most important driver influencing the plant metabolite content, revealing peak contents of alkannin/shikonin at the fruiting stage. In contrast, the soil microbiome had the biggest impact on the plant root microbiome. Correlation analyses performed on the measured metabolite content and the abundance of individual bacterial and fungal taxa suggested a dynamic, at times positive or negative relationship between root-associated microorganisms and root metabolism. In particular, the bacterial Allorhizobium-Neorhizobium-Pararhizobium-Rhizobium group and the fungal species Penicillium jensenii were found to be positively correlated with higher content of alkannins.
2021-11-28 | ST002021 | MetabolomicsWorkbench
Project description:Bacterial diversity in dioxin contaminated soil