High-methionine soybean has no significant effect on nitrogen-transforming bacteria in rhizosphere soil

Abstract

Transgenic plants may induce shifts in the microbial community composition that in turn alter microbially-mediated nutrient cycling in soil. Studies of how specific microbial groups respond to genetically modified (GM) planting help predict potential impacts upon processes performed by these groups. This study investigated the effect of transgenic high-methionine soybean cv. ZD91 on nitrogen-fixing and ammonia-oxidizing bacterial populations. A difference in nitrogen-fixing or ammonia-oxidizing bacteria community composition was not found, suggesting that cv. ZD91 does not alter the bacterial populations in rhizosphere soil. This study increases our understanding of the potential effect of transgenic soybean on microbial functional groups within soil by suggesting that nitrogen-transforming bacteria may be useful for future investigations on the GM crops impact in the soil ecosystem.