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This study investigated the bacterial communities associated with different compartments of Citrullus colocynthis, a drought-adapted plant growing in semi-arid Morocco. Using DNA sequencing and cultivation methods, researchers found that bacterial diversity and composition varied by plant compartment, with the rhizosphere showing highest diversity and leaf endosphere the most restricted community. The identified bacteria possess genetic traits for stress tolerance, nutrient acquisition, and plant colonization, suggesting they may help the plant survive harsh environmental conditions.
Why it matters
The bacterial strains identified could be developed as biofertilizers or bioprotectants to help crops withstand drought, heat, and nutrient-poor soils in arid agricultural regions. Understanding how plants and microbes interact in extreme environments may inform strategies for climate-resilient agriculture.
⚠️ Preprint – Noch nicht peer-reviewed
Dieser Artikel wurde noch nicht von unabhängigen Experten begutachtet. Die Ergebnisse sind vorläufig und sollten mit Vorsicht interpretiert werden.
Plants inhabitng in arid and semi-arid ecosystems, such as Citrullus colocynthis (L.) Schrad., are adapted to drought, heat, salinity, and nutrient limitation. Their associated microbial communities may further support plant persistence under these harsh conditions. Here, we characterized the bacterial communities associated with leaf endosphere, rhizosphere and roots of C. colocynthis growing in a semi-arid region of Moroccan using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, culture-dependent isolation, and genome-informed functional profiling of selected isolates. The results revealed a structured microbiome, with rhizosphere harboring the highest bacterial diversity, roots representing an intermediate selective habitat, and the leaf endosphere containing a more restricted assemblage. Communities were dominated by members of the phyla Pseudomonadota, Actinomycetota, Bacillota, and Bacteroidota. Several families associated to plant colonization, nutrient mobilization, and stress tolerance, including Pseudomonadaceae, Microbacteriaceae, Rhizobiaceae, Devosiaceae, and Xanthomonadaceae, showed compartment-specific enrichment. Although soil physicochemical properties influenced bacterial community structure, they explained only part of the variation observed, suggesting that bacteriome assembly is shaped by both environmental conditions and host filtering processes. Culture-bdependant analyses recovered diverse endophytic genera, mainly Achromobacter, Pseudomonas, and Glutamicibacter, most of which were also detected in the amplicon sequencing dataset. Genome-based profiling identified traits related to stress response, osmoprotection, nutrient-related metabolism, colonization, and plant-microbe interactions. Together, these findings highlight C. colocynthis as a reservoir for functionally relevant bacterial diversity with ecological and biotechnological potential in semi-arid environments.