Enhancing phosphate-solubilising microbial communities through artificial selection

• Published in: Nature communications Vol. 15; no. 1; p. 1649
• Main Authors: Faller, Lena, Leite, Marcio F. A., Kuramae, Eiko E.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 23-02-2024; Nature Publishing Group; Nature Portfolio
• Subjects: 45/22; 45/23; 45/77; 631/158/2456; 631/326/2565/2134; 704/158/855; 704/158/857; Agricultural practices; Fertilizers; Humanities and Social Sciences; Hydroponics; Klebsiella; Microbial activity; Microbiomes; Microorganisms; multidisciplinary; Perturbation; Phosphate; Phosphates; Propagation; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Solubilization; Sustainable agriculture; Sustainable practices
• ISSN: 2041-1723; 2041-1723
• DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46060-x

Microbial communities, acting as key drivers of ecosystem processes, harbour immense potential for sustainable agriculture practices. Phosphate-solubilising microorganisms, for example, can partially replace conventional phosphate fertilisers, which rely on finite resources. However, understanding the mechanisms and engineering efficient communities poses a significant challenge. In this study, we employ two artificial selection methods, environmental perturbation, and propagation, to construct phosphate-solubilising microbial communities. To assess trait transferability, we investigate the community performance in different media and a hydroponic system with
Chrysanthemum indicum
. Our findings reveal a distinct subset of phosphate-solubilising bacteria primarily dominated by
Klebsiella
and Enterobacterales. The propagated communities consistently demonstrate elevated levels of phosphate solubilisation, surpassing the starting soil community by 24.2% in activity. The increased activity of propagated communities remains consistent upon introduction into the hydroponic system. This study shows the efficacy of community-level artificial selection, particularly through propagation, as a tool for successfully modifying microbial communities to enhance phosphate solubilisation.
Phosphate-solubilising microorganisms can contribute to reduce the use of P fertiliser. Here, the authors use two artificial selection methods, environmental perturbation and propagation, to build phosphate-solubilising communities that retain P-solubilising capacity in hydroponic systems.