Funding information CESAMSaline agriculture and the crop cultivation of halophytes represent an alternative for the reclamation of salinized soils and for the management of irrigation water. Halotolerant plant growth promoting bacteria with biocontrol effect, as an alternative to commercial fungicides, may contribute to improve crop productivity while mitigating saline stress effects. The objective of this work was to isolate autochthonous rhizobacteria with biocontrol features, to be used as germination enhancers and plant-growth promoting agents in the crop cultivation of Salicornia ramosissima. A set of isolates obtained from the rhizosphere of S. ramosissima was characterised in terms of Gram, motility, salt tolerance and biocontrol traits (hydrogen cyanide production, antifungal activity and production of extracellular lipases and proteases). One Gram-positive motile isolate that tested positive for all biocontrol traits was identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing as Bacillus aryabhattai. The inoculation of S. ramosissima seeds with B. aryabhattai SP1016-20 reduced the negative effect of salinity on the germination efficiency. At the highest tested salinity (30 g/L NaCl) the final germination efficiency of inoculated seeds doubled in relation to noninoculated controls. Although the mechanisms involved in the biocontrol effect were not defined in the current work, the results highlight the potential of Bacillus aryabhattai SP1016-20 as a plant-growth promoting agent for the crop cultivation of Salicornia and contribute to the strengthening of the scientific basis of biosaline agriculture and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria-assisted crop cultivation of halophytes in saline soils and estuarine sediments. K E Y W O R D S
We report the case of an 8-year-old boy with delayed psychomotor development, dysarthria, choreoathetosis, joint mild hyperlaxity, coarse hair, dry lax skin and facial dimorphisms. Cerebral magnetic resonance revealed diffuse vascular tortuosity, with multiple loops in some arteries of Willis' circle. Clinical presentation, corroborated by the imagiological findings, raised the suspicion of a disorder of copper metabolism. Serum copper and ceruloplasmin were decreased and lateral skull X-rays demonstrated bilateral occipital exostoses. ATP7A gene sequencing identified a hemizygous variant c.375delA (p.Ala126Glnfs*2), confirming the diagnosis of occipital horn syndrome. Occipital horn syndrome (also called X-linked cutis laxa) is a milder form of Menkes disease. This rare disorder of copper metabolism results from mutations in ATP7A gene encoding a transmembrane copper-transporting enzyme. The broad spectrum of clinical presentation makes the diagnosis challenging. This case illustrates the importance of a multidisciplinary approach, highlighting the role of neuroimaging.
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