title: Regulation of plasma membrane aquaporins by inoculation with a Bacillus megaterium strain in maize (Zea mays L.) plants under unstressed and salt-stressed conditions.
abstract: It is documented that some plant-growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) enhance plant salt tolerance. However, as to how PGPR may influence two crucial components of plant salt tolerance such as, root hydraulic characteristics and aquaporin regulation has been almost unexplored. Here, maize (Zea mays L.) plants were inoculated with a Bacillus megaterium strain previously isolated from a degraded soil and characterized as PGPR. Inoculated plants were found to exhibit higher root hydraulic conductance (L) values under both unstressed and salt-stressed conditions. These higher L values in inoculated plants correlated with higher plasma membrane type two (PIP2) aquaporin amount in their roots under salt-stressed conditions. Also, ZmPIP1;1 protein amount under salt-stressed conditions was higher in inoculated leaves than in non-inoculated ones. Hence, the different regulation of PIP aquaporin expression and abundance by the inoculation with the B. megaterium strain could be one of the causes of the different salt response in terms of root growth, necrotic leaf area, leaf relative water content and L by the inoculation treatment.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Microbiologia del Suelo y Sistemas Simbióticos, Estación Experimental del Zaidín (CSIC), Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: Adriana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Marulanda
authors.forename: Rosario
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Azcón
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Chaumont
authors.forename: Juan Manuel
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Ruiz-Lozano
authors.forename: Ricardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Aroca
mesh_terms: D020346:Aquaporins / Q000378:metabolism*; D001410:Bacillus megaterium / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology*; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000382:microbiology; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant / Q000187:drug effects; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology; D018517:Plant Roots / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000633:toxicity; D003313:Zea mays / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D020346:Aquaporins; D012965:Sodium Chloride