Comparative assessment of autochthonous bacterial and fungal communities and microbial biomarkers of polluted agricultural soils of the Terra dei Fuochi

Abstract

Organic and inorganic xenobiotic compounds can affect the potential ecological function of the soil, altering its biodiversity. Therefore, the response of microbial communities to environmental pollution is a critical issue in soil ecology. Here, a high-throughput sequencing approach was used to investigate the indigenous bacterial and fungal community structure as well as the impact of pollutants on their diversity and richness in contaminated and noncontaminated soils of a National Interest Priority Site of Campania Region (Italy) called “Terra dei Fuochi”. The microbial populations shifted in the polluted soils via their mechanism of adaptation to contamination, establishing a new balance among prokaryotic and eukaryotic populations. Statistical analyses showed that the indigenous microbial communities were most strongly affected by contamination rather than by site of origin. Overabundant taxa and Actinobacteria were identified as sensitive biomarkers for assessing soil pollution and could provide general information on the health of the environment. This study has important implications for microbial ecology in contaminated environments, increasing our knowledge of the capacity of natural ecosystems to develop microbiota adapted to polluted soil in sites with high agricultural potential and providing a possible approach for modeling pollution indicators for bioremediation purposes.

Development and Application of Low-Cost and Eco-Sustainable Bio-Stimulant Containing a New Plant Growth-Promoting Strain Kosakonia pseudosacchari TL13

“…Indeed, it includes different species that were known to synthesize substances which promote plant growth (i.e., hormones such as IAA, ethylene, and gibberellins), to increase nutrient availability (i.e., N, P, Fe) and their uptake in soil ( Kim et al, 2011 ) and they act as plant disease-suppressive bacteria ( Kobayashi et al, 2002 ; Haas and Défago, 2005 ). Therefore, the presence of these populations in the soil highlight its high biological fertility potential because they could improve the growth, fitness and health of agricultural plants playing an important role in the bionetwork function of soils ( Ventorino et al, 2018 ). Although many members belonging to the genus Kosakonia , as K. radicincitans , are known to interact and exert beneficial effects on plant growth ( Bergottini et al, 2015 ; Kämpfer et al, 2016 ; Berger et al, 2017 ; Brock et al, 2018 ), PGP properties in K. pseudosacchari species are poorly investigated.…”

Microbial Consortia: Promising Probiotics as Plant Biostimulants for Sustainable Agriculture

“…Furthermore, the Trichoderma - Azotobacter consortia could be integrated with botanical and inorganic compounds, seaweeds, polymers, animal-derived products to develop truly effective, and reliable beneficial plant products. ‘Omics studies can reveal basic mechanisms regulating these complex interactions and provide new knowledge concentrated on the mechanisms that could be relevant for improving the next generation of plant biostimulants (Bell et al, 2015; Soni et al, 2017; Fiorentino et al, 2018; Ventorino et al, 2018).…”

Ecotoxicity of soil contaminated with diesel fuel and biodiesel

“…Contamination can affect soil ecology, including its microbial abundance and diversity 38 . The impact of diesel oil and biofuels on the number and activity of soil microorganisms is not conclusive 39 .…”