Efficiency of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and rhizobacteria to mitigate drought stress and enhance phosphorus acquisition by Zea mays L.

• Grant number: 20/12751-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research Internship - Doctorate
• Effective date (Start): February 02, 2021
• Effective date (End): January 01, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Agronomy - Soil Science
• Principal Investigator: Elke Jurandy Bran Nogueira Cardoso
• Grantee: Antonio Marcos Miranda Silva
• Supervisor: David Leonard Jones
• Host Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil
• Research place: Bangor University, Wales
• Associated to the scholarship: 19/13436-8 - Mitigation of water stress in maize (Zea mays L.) after arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and growth promoting rhizobacteria inoculation, BP.DR

Abstract

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) are key soil microorganisms capable to increase several biochemical mechanisms in plants, such as alleviation of drought, nutrient efficiency use and pathogen control. The aim of this project is to evaluate the potential of AMF and PGPR in P soil acquisition by maize plants, under drought stress, using an approach with labelled phosphorus. A pot experiment will be set up in a greenhouse using sterile soil collected in Brazil. Three types of soil inoculation will be tested: i) only AMF, ii) only PGPR, and iii) a consortium of AMF and PGPR as well as a control treatment without any inoculation. Additionally, part of the pots will receive mineral fertilizer with labelled-P. Mesh exclusion will be used in the soil to determine the role of AMF in P uptake from the different P sources. The plants will be harvested 30 days after transplanting and soil, shoot and root will be sampled for microbiological and chemical analyses. We expect that using combined AMF and PGPR can promote a higher acquisition of P by maize plants under drought stress