Penicillium oxalicum Isolated from Zea maysRhizosphere as a Promising Plant Growth Promotor via Multiple Mechanisms.

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Port Said University, Port Said, 42524, Egypt

2 Botany Department, Faculty Of Science, Suez canal university

Abstract

The use of synthetic fertilizers in agricultural production has harmful impacts on the ecosystems. Therefore, there is an emergent demand for using natural and sustainable practices to save the environment. Some of the soil microflora are plant-growth-promoting fungi (PGPF) which promote plant growth and are considered potential biocontrol agents against phytopathogens. In the present investigation, more than 300 fungal species were isolated from the rhizosphere and rhizoplane of Zea mays and Vicia faba from AlRaswa Ferry of Port Said governorate and characterized for their potential as an Arabidopsis thaliana plant growth promotor. Four species, Penicillium oxalicum, Fusarium oxysporum, Aspergillus niger, and Paecilomyces lilacinus revealed to have the highest capacity to enhance A. thaliana growth. The most observed effects on A. thaliana are a significant improvement in root length development and the number of leaves due to multiple mechanisms, e.g., the fungal phytohormone IAA production, volatile and siderophore production, and phosphate solubilization. Fungal volatiles of Penicillium oxalicum increased the shoot length of seedlings by 11.8%, the root length by 250%, the number of leaves by 60%, and the indole acetic acid production by 110% compared to the controls. Our results introduce Penicillium oxalicum as a natural biological plant growth inducer whether individually applied or mixed with the other identified fungal species which may act as a practicable substitute for harmful chemicals in the agricultural industry.

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Alfarama Journal of Basic & Applied Sciences
Volume 4, Issue 4
October 2023
Pages 564-584

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