Colonization by the Mycorrhizal Helper Bacillus pumilus HR10 Is Enhanced During the Establishment of Ectomycorrhizal Symbiosis Between Hymenochaete sp. Rl and Pinus thunbergii

Ya-Hui Wang; Wei-Liang Kong; Mei-Ling Zhu; Yun Dai; Xiao-Qin Wu

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2022.818912

Colonization by the Mycorrhizal Helper Bacillus pumilus HR10 Is Enhanced During the Establishment of Ectomycorrhizal Symbiosis Between Hymenochaete sp. Rl and Pinus thunbergii

Front Microbiol. 2022 Mar 7:13:818912. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.818912. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Ya-Hui Wang^{1

2}, Wei-Liang Kong^{1

2}, Mei-Ling Zhu^{1

2}, Yun Dai^{1

2}, Xiao-Qin Wu^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Forestry, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, China.
² Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Prevention and Management of Invasive Species, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, China.

Abstract

There are complex interactions between mycorrhizal helper bacteria (MHBs) and ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi, with MHBs promoting mycorrhizal synthesis and ECM fungi regulating plant rhizobacterial colonization, diversity, and function. In this study, to investigate whether the ECM fungus Hymenochaete sp. Rl affects the survival and colonization of the MHB strain Bacillus pumilus HR10 in the rhizosphere, the biomass of B. pumilus HR10 was measured in the rhizosphere and mycorrhizosphere. In addition, extracts of Hymenochaete sp. Rl and Pinus thunbergii were evaluated for their effect on B. pumilus HR10 colonization (growth, sporulation, biofilm formation, extracellular polysaccharide and extracellular protein contents, flagellar motility, and expression of colonization-related genes). The results showed that inoculation of Hymenochaete sp. Rl significantly increased the biomass of B. pumilus HR10 in the rhizosphere; however, while extracts of Hymenochaete sp. Rl and P. thunbergii did not affect the biomass or spore formation of HR10, they did affect its biofilm formation, extracellular polysaccharide and extracellular protein production, and flagellar motility. Furthermore, the addition of symbiont extracts affected the expression of chemotaxis-related genes in HR10. When the extracts were added separately, the expression of srf genes in HR10 increased; when the extracts were added simultaneously, the expression of the flagellin gene fliG in HR10 increased, but there was no significant effect on the expression of srf genes, consistent with the results on biofilm production. Thus, Hymenochaete sp. Rl and P. thunbergii roots had a positive effect on colonization by B. pumilus HR10 at the rhizosphere level through their secretions.

Keywords: biofilm; colonization; ectomycorrhizal fungi; motility; mycorrhizal helper bacteria; mycorrhizosphere.