Scientists at the University of Birmingham have invented a new method to encourage bacteria to form growth-promoting ecosystems that could be used to coat the roots of plant seedlings, which is expected to result in stronger, healthier plants, and higher crop yields in agriculture.
form mutually beneficial relationships with communities of microbes in soil, and exchange nutrients, allowing both the plant and the microbes to flourish. This is particularly critical in the early stages of a plant's life when the seedling is in a race against time to reach self-sufficient growth before the nutrients and energy stores in the seed run out.
A biofilm is a finely orchestrated community of microbes, supported by matrix of biological polymers that forms a protective micro-environment and holds the community together. These new polymers were designed to act as an adhesive scaffold,"seeding" the formation of a microorganism-polymer complex to initiate and expedite biofilm formation. Once the biofilm is formed, the bacteria become a self-sufficient and self-organizing community, and produce their own matrix to allow the transmission of nutrients and water, and the discharge of waste products.
Pavan Adoni commented,"We anticipate that the polymer will ultimately be used as a seed coating, perhaps in conjunction with bacteria such as B. Subtilis, which is naturally present in soil, increases the stress tolerance of, and is currently used as a soil inoculant. We envisage a more targeted approach that only treats the seed, so that when it germinates the bacteria are ready to grow in the safe harbor environment provided by a microorganism polymer complex.
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