Premium
Plant growth promoting potential and phylogenetic characteristics of a lichenized nitrogen fixing bacterium, Enterobacter cloacae
Author(s) -
Swamy Chidanandamurthy Thippeswamy,
Gayathri Devaraja,
Devaraja Thimmalapura Neelakantaiah,
Bandekar Mandar,
D'Souza Stecy Elvira,
Meena Ram Murti,
Ramaiah Nagappa
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
journal of basic microbiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.58
H-Index - 54
eISSN - 1521-4028
pISSN - 0233-111X
DOI - 10.1002/jobm.201600197
Subject(s) - enterobacter , enterobacter cloacae , biology , gammaproteobacteria , microbiology and biotechnology , serratia , proteobacteria , bacteria , siderophore , strain (injury) , phyllosphere , botany , 16s ribosomal rna , pseudomonas , enterobacteriaceae , biochemistry , escherichia coli , genetics , gene , anatomy
Lichens are complex symbiotic association of mycobionts, photobionts, and bacteriobionts, including chemolithotropic bacteria. In the present study, 46 lichenized bacteria were isolated by conventional and enrichment culture methods on nitrogen‐free bromothymol blue (NFb) medium. Only 11 of the 46 isolates fixed nitrogen on NFb and had reduced acetylene. All these 11 isolates had also produced siderophore and 10 of them the IAA. Further, ammonia production was recorded from nine of these nitrogen fixers (NF). On molecular characterization, 16 S rRNA sequencing recorded that, nine NF belonged to Proteobacteria , within Gammaproteobacteria , and were closely related to Enterobacter sp. with a maximum similarity to Enterobacter cloacae . Each one of our NF isolates was aligned closely to Enterobacter pulveris strain E443, Cronobacter sakazakii strain PNP8 and Providencia rettgeri strain ALK058. Notably, a few strains we examined found to possess plant growth promoting properties. This is the first report of Enterobacter sp. from lichens which may be inhabit lichen thalli extrinsically or intrinsically.