Power of seeds: exploring the growth boosting potential of endophytes
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.34117/bjdv10n6-071Keywords:
maize, seed endophyte, Bacillus thuringiensis, antagonistic effect, plant growth promotionAbstract
Insect pests on agricultural crops cause biotic stress, resulting in enormous yield losses. Nowadays, microbial insecticides for insect pests have been explored to overcome insect resistance and environmental hazards caused by chemical insecticides. Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is known as the most successful microbial insecticide globally, but its commercial application is limited due to its vulnerability to abiotic factors. To overcome these factors, the establishment of Bt as an endophyte in maize plants by seed treatment has been proposed. So, for that reason, the present study aimed to investigate the effect of seed endophytic bacteria in maize on Bt isolates and vice versa. Furthermore, the study was also carried out to assess the antibiotic resistance of these bacteria as well as their role in plant growth promotion. A total of 12 maize seed endophytic bacterial isolates were used for this study. In that, seven isolates belong to the Bacillus genus, two to the Staphylococcus genus, and one each from Paenibacillus, Pantoea, and Enterobacter. No antagonistic effect of seed endophytes was observed against Bt strains. Five isolates had the ability to solubilize phosphate and potassium, seven showed zinc solubilization, and all the isolates showed nitrogen fixation ability. Thus, these seed endophytic bacteria can be explored as potential bio-inputs for improving plant growth, and their harmonizing effect on Bt has been found to be promising for the establishment of Bt as an endophyte in maize plants.
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