Unlocking the Microbiome Communities of Banana (Musa spp.) under Disease Stressed (Fusarium wilt) and Non-Stressed Conditions

Abstract

We assessed the diversity, structure, and assemblage of bacterial and fungal communities associated with banana plants with and without Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense (Foc) symptoms. A total of 117,814 bacterial and 17,317 fungal operational taxonomy units (OTUs) were identified in the rhizosphere, roots, and corm of the host plant. Results revealed that bacterial and fungal microbiota present in roots and corm primarily emanated from the rhizosphere. The composition of bacterial communities in the rhizosphere, roots, and corm were different, with more diversity observed in the rhizosphere and less in the corm. However, distinct sample types i.e., without (asymptomatic) and with (symptomatic) Fusarium symptoms were the major drivers of the fungal community composition. Considering the high relative abundance among samples, we identified core microbiomes with bacterial and fungal OTUs classified into 20 families and colonizing distinct plant components of banana. Our core microbiome assigned 129 bacterial and 37 fungal genera to known taxa.

Control of Banana Wilt Disease Caused by Fusarium oxysporum Schlecht f.sp. cubense (E. F. Smith) Using Crab Shell Powder and Chitosan

“…Samples of banana with asymptomatic Fusarium wilt showed higher bacterial and fungal diversity and abundance than the infected samples. Several of those dicovered microbes communities were known to play key roles in plant growth and health (Kaushal, Swennen, & Mahuku, 2020). Abundance of some beneficial bacterial of different phyla isolated from healthy banana soils has been demonstrated to correspond with lower Fusarium disease incidence in banana plantation (Efendi, Pambudi, & Pancoro, 2019).…”

Plant Microbiomes: Do Different Preservation Approaches and Primer Sets Alter Our Capacity to Assess Microbial Diversity and Community Composition?

“…However, most of these methods are not applicable for plant microbiome due to the requirement of the tissue integrity for downstream analysis. In plant microbiome studies, snap freezing is still the most common method for preserving plant materials (Agler et al, 2016;Deyett and Rolshausen, 2020), but in suboptimal conditions, air-dry with silica gel (Bazzicalupo et al, 2013) ice incubation or fridging (−4°C to 4°C, Kaushal et al, 2020) have also been used for sample preservation, but the effect of this approach on microbiome integrity has not been fully tested compared to snap freezing method. With the increasing interests of harnessing plant microbiome to sustainably promote crop productivity, more initiatives and projects aimed to unfold the plant microbiome from regional to global scales have been launched recently.…”

Functional Diversity of Soil Nematodes in Relation to the Impact of Agriculture—A Review

“…Banana has a rich microbiome diversity, which is influenced by plant health. In East Africa, banana plants with (symptomatic) and without (asymptomatic) Fusarium wilt were the major drivers of the fungal community composition in the rhizosphere [131]. Isolating specific candidates or mediating the microbial composition towards improving plant vigor or health, or for managing banana pests and diseases, offer much potential and benefits to production.…”