Effect of Bacteria Inoculation on Colonization of Roots by <i>Tuber melanosporum</i> and Growth of <i>Quercus ilex</i> Seedlings
2024
Veronica Giorgi | Antonella Amicucci | Lucia Landi | Ivan Castelli | Gianfranco Romanazzi | Cristiano Peroni | Bianca Ranocchi | Alessandra Zambonelli | Davide Neri
<i>Tuber melanosporum</i> is an ascomycete that forms ectomycorrhizal (ECM) symbioses with a wide range of host plants, producing edible fruiting bodies with high economic value. The quality of seedlings in the early symbiotic stage is important for successful truffle cultivation. Numerous bacterial species have been reported to take part in the truffle biological cycle and influence the establishment of roots symbiosis in plant hosts and the development of the carpophore. In this work, three different bacteria formulations were co-inoculated in <i>Quercus ilex</i> L. seedlings two months after <i>T. melanosporum</i> inoculation. At four months of bacterial application, the <i>T. melanosporum</i> ECM root tip rate of colonization and bacterial presence were assessed using both morphological and molecular techniques. A 2.5-fold increase in ECM colonization rate was found in the presence of <i>Pseudomonas</i> sp. compared to the seedlings inoculated only with <i>T. melanosporum</i>. The same treatment caused reduced plant growth either for the aerial and root part. Meanwhile, the ECM colonization combined with <i>Bradyrhizobium</i> sp. and <i>Pseudomonas</i> sp. + <i>Bradyrhizobium</i> sp. reduced the relative density of fibrous roots (nutrient absorption). Our work suggests that the role of bacteria in the early symbiotic stages of ECM colonization involves both the mycorrhizal symbiosis rate and plant root development processes, both essential for improve the quality of truffle-inoculated seedlings produced in commercial nurseries.
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