Does Rhizobial Inoculation Change the Microbial Community in Field Soils? A| |Comparison with Agricultural Land-use Changes.

Although microbial inoculation may be effective for sustainable crop production, detrimental aspects have been argued because of the potential of inoculated microorganisms to behave as invaders and negatively affect the microbial ecosystem. We herein compared the impact of rhizobial inoculation on the soil bacterial community with that of agricultural land-use changes using a 16S rRNA amplicon ana-lysis. Soybean plants were cultivated with and without five types of bradyrhizobial inoculants (Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens or Bradyrhizobium ottawaense) in experimental fields of Andosol, and the high nodule occupancy (35-72%) of bradyrhizobial inoculants was confirmed by nosZ PCR. However, bradyrhizobial inoculants did not significantly affect Shannon's diversity index (α-diversity) or shifts (ß-diversity) in the bacterial community in the soils. Moreover, the soil bacterial community was significantly affected by land-use types (conventional cropping, organic cropping, and original forest), where ß-diversity correlated with soil chemical properties (pH, carbon, and nitrogen contents). Therefore, the effects of bradyrhizobial inoculation on bacterial communities in bulk soil were minor, regardless of high nodule occupancy. We also observed a correlation between the relative abundance of bacterial classes (Alphaproteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, and Gemmatimonadetes) and land-use types or soil chemical properties. The impact of microbial inoculation on soil microbial ecosystems has been exami-ned to a limited extent, such as rhizosphere communities and viability. In the present study, we found that bacterial community shifts in soil were more strongly affected by land usage than by rhizobial inoculation. Therefore, the results obtained herein highlight the importance of assessing microbial inoculants in consideration of the entire land management system.

Allelic variability in the Rpp1 locus conferring resistance to Asian soybean rust revealed by genome-wide association.

Soybean is a crucial crop for the Brazilian economy, but it faces challenges from the biotrophic fungus Phakopsora pachyrhizi, which causes Asian Soybean Rust (ASR). In this study, we aimed to identify SNPs associated with resistance within the Rpp1 locus, which is effective against Brazilian ASR populations. We employed GWAS and re-sequencing analyzes to pinpoint SNP markers capable of differentiating between soybean accessions harboring the Rpp1, Rpp1-b and other alternative alleles in the Rpp1 locus and from susceptible soybean cultivars. Seven SNP markers were found to be associated with ASR resistance through GWAS, with three of them defining haplotypes that efficiently distinguished the accessions based on their ASR resistance and source of the Rpp gene. These haplotypes were subsequently validated using a bi-parental population and a diverse set of Rpp sources, demonstrating that the GWAS markers co-segregate with ASR resistance. We then examined the presence of these haplotypes in a diverse set of soybean genomes worldwide, finding a few new potential sources of Rpp1/Rpp1-b. Further genomic sequence analysis revealed nucleotide differences within the genes present in the Rpp1 locus, including the ULP1-NBS-LRR genes, which are potential R gene candidates. These results provide valuable insights into ASR resistance in soybean, thus helping the development of resistant soybean varieties through genetic breeding programs.

Diversity of the Hydroxylamine Oxidoreductase (HAO) Gene and Its Enzyme Active Site in Agricultural Field Soils.

Nitrification is a key process in the biogeochemical nitrogen cycle and a major emission source of the greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N2O). The periplasmic enzyme hydroxylamine oxidoreductase (HAO) is involved in the oxidation of hydroxylamine to nitric oxide in the second step of nitrification, producing N2O as a byproduct. Its three-dimensional structure demonstrates that slight differences in HAO active site residues have inhibitor effects. Therefore, a more detailed understanding of the diversity of HAO active site residues in soil microorganisms is important for the development of novel nitrification inhibitors using structure-guided drug design. However, this has not yet been examined. In the present study, we investigated hao gene diversity in beta-proteobacterial ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (ß-AOB) and complete ammonia-oxidizing (comammox; Nitrospira spp.) bacteria in agricultural fields using a clone library ana-lysis. A total of 1,949 hao gene sequences revealed that hao gene diversity in ß-AOB and comammox bacteria was affected by the fertilizer treatment and field type, respectively. Moreover, hao sequences showed the almost complete conservation of the six HAO active site residues in both ß-AOB and comammox bacteria. The diversity of nitrifying bacteria showed similarity between hao and amoA genes. The nxrB amplicon sequence revealed the dominance of Nitrospira cluster II in tea field soils. The present study is the first to reveal hao gene diversity in agricultural soils, which will accelerate the efficient screening of HAO inhibitors and evaluations of their suppressive effects on nitrification in agricultural soils.