Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is one of the most important cereal food crops worldwide. Various abiotic and biotic stresses or their combinations lead to crop losses (up to 50-82%) and pose a serious threat to the agricultural industry and food security. Plant growth-promoting endophytic bacteria Bacillus subtilis are considered as a bioactive and eco-friendly strategy for plant protection. Earlier, we have shown B. subtilis 10-4 has a growth-promoting and anti-stress effect on wheat under water deficiency. Here, we investigated the effect of B. subtilis 10-4 and B. subtilis 10-4+salicylic acid (SA) on growth and tolerance of wheat (cv. ‘Omskaya-35’) to combined drought (12%PEG) and Fusarium culmorum. 12%PEG and F. culmorum led to yellowing of leaves (in addition to traces of the root damages). Inoculation with 10-4 and especially 10-4+SA reduced the fusarium development in wheat under drought. Similar effects were revealed for growth parameters. Also, 10-4 (especially 10-4+SA) reduces stress-induced lipid peroxidation (MDA). Such physiological effect may be connected with the ability of strain 10-4 to colonize the internal tissues of host-plant and regulate metabolism from the inside. The obtained construct based on the plasmid pHT01 and the green fluorescent protein (gfp) gene, by which was modified the strain 10-4, will allow revealing the nature of the symbiotic relationships between the strain 10-4 and host-plant. The findings indicate that application B. subtilis 10-4 and its composition with SA may be an effective strategy to increase wheat tolerance to the combined abiotic/biotic stresses.
Plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPBs) and copper (II) oxide (CuO) nanoparticle ameliorates DNA damage and DNA Methylation in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) exposed to NaCl stress
