Oxalotrophy, a widespread trait of plant-associated Burkholderia species, is involved in successful root colonization of lupin and maize by Burkholderia phytofirmans.

ABSTRACT: Plant roots and shoots harbor complex bacterial communities. Early seed and plantlet colonization plays a key role in determining which bacterial populations will successfully invade plant tissues, yet the mechanisms enabling plants to select for beneficial rather than harmful populations are largely unknown. In this study, we demonstrate a role of oxalate as a determinant in this selection process, using members of the genus Burkholderia as model organisms. Oxalotrophy, i.e., the ability to use oxalate as a carbon source, was found to be a property strictly associated with plant-beneficial species of the Burkholderia genus, while plant pathogenic (B. glumae, B. plantarii) or human opportunistic pathogens (Burkholderia cepacia complex strains) were unable to degrade oxalate. We further sho

SUBMITTER: Kost T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3886118 | biostudies-literature | 2014

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature