Abstract
Current agriculture intensifies crop cultivation to meet food demand, leading to unsustainable use of chemical fertilizers. This study investigates a few physiological and agronomic responses of common wheat following the inoculation with plant growth-promoting bacteria to reduce nitrogen inputs. A field trial was conducted in 2022–2023, in Legnago (Verona, Italy) on Triticum aestivum var. LG-Auriga comparing full (180 kg ha−1) and reduced (130 kg ha−1) N doses, both with and without foliar application at end tillering of the N-fixing bacterium Methylobacterium symbioticum. Biofertilization did not improve shoot growth, while it seldom increased the root length density in the arable layer. It delayed leaf senescence, prolonged photosynthetic activity, and amplified stomatal conductance and PSII efficiency under the reduced N dose. Appreciable ACC-deaminase activity of such bacterium disclosed augmented nitrogen retrieval and reduced ethylene production, explaining the ameliorated stay-green. Yield and test weight were unaffected by biofertilization, while both glutenin-to-gliadin and HMW-to-LMW ratios increased together with dough tenacity. It is concluded that Methylobacterium symbioticum can amplify nitrogen metabolism at a reduced nitrogen dose, offering a viable approach to reduce chemical fertilization under suboptimal growing conditions for achieving a more sustainable agriculture. Further research over multiple growing seasons and soil types is necessary to corroborate these preliminary observations.
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Claims 10
Claim · model-written summary
Biofertilization did not improve wheat shoot growth.
- Taxon
- common wheat
Triticum aestivumt0 - Treatment
- Biofertilizatione0
- Interactor
- Methylobacterium symbioticum
Methylobacterium symbioticume1symbionte0 - Outcome
- shoot growthe0
- Direction
- did not improvee0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Biofertilization did not improve shoot growth”
t0“Common Wheat”
e1“Methylobacterium symbioticum can amplify nitrogen metabolism at a reduced nitrogen dose”
Claim · model-written summary
Biofertilization occasionally increased root length density in the arable layer.
- Taxon
- common wheatTriticum aestivumt0
- Treatment
- Biofertilizatione1
- Outcome
- root length densitye0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Qualifier
- seldome0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“it seldom increased the root length density in the arable layer.”
t0“Common Wheat”
e1“Biofertilization did not improve shoot growth”
Claim · model-written summary
Under reduced N, biofertilization delayed leaf senescence.
- Taxon
- common wheatTriticum aestivumt0
- Treatment
- foliar applicatione1
- Interactor
- Methylobacterium symbioticumMethylobacterium symbioticume1symbionte0
- Outcome
- leaf senescencee0
- Direction
- delayede0
- Qualifier
- under the reduced N dosee0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“It delayed leaf senescence, prolonged photosynthetic activity, and amplified stomatal conductance and PSII efficiency under the reduced N dose.”
t0“Common Wheat”
e1“foliar application at end tillering of the N-fixing bacterium Methylobacterium symbioticum”
Claim · model-written summary
Under reduced N, biofertilization prolonged photosynthetic activity.
- Taxon
- common wheatTriticum aestivumt0
- Treatment
- foliar applicatione1
- Outcome
- photosynthetic activitye0
- Direction
- prolongede0
- Qualifier
- under the reduced N dosee0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“It delayed leaf senescence, prolonged photosynthetic activity, and amplified stomatal conductance and PSII efficiency under the reduced N dose.”
t0“Common Wheat”
e1“foliar application at end tillering of the N-fixing bacterium Methylobacterium symbioticum”
Claim · model-written summary
Under reduced N, biofertilization increased stomatal conductance and PSII efficiency.
- Taxon
- common wheatTriticum aestivumt0
- Treatment
- foliar applicatione1
- Outcome
- stomatal conductance and PSII efficiencye0
- Direction
- amplifiede0
- Qualifier
- under the reduced N dosee0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“It delayed leaf senescence, prolonged photosynthetic activity, and amplified stomatal conductance and PSII efficiency under the reduced N dose.”
t0“Common Wheat”
e1“foliar application at end tillering of the N-fixing bacterium Methylobacterium symbioticum”
Claim · model-written summary
Bacterial ACC deaminase activity was proposed to enhance N retrieval and reduce ethylene production.
- Taxon
- common wheatTriticum aestivumt0
- Interactor
- Methylobacterium symbioticumMethylobacterium symbioticume1symbionte0
- Gene
- ACC-deaminasee0
- Outcome
- ameliorated stay-greene0
- Qualifier
- augmented nitrogen retrieval and reduced ethylene productione0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Appreciable ACC-deaminase activity of such bacterium disclosed augmented nitrogen retrieval and reduced ethylene production, explaining the ameliorated stay-green.”
t0“Common Wheat”
e1“Methylobacterium symbioticum can amplify nitrogen metabolism at a reduced nitrogen dose”
Claim · model-written summary
Biofertilization did not alter wheat yield or test weight.
- Taxon
- common wheatTriticum aestivumt0
- Treatment
- biofertilizatione0
- Outcome
- Yield and test weighte0
- Direction
- unaffectede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Yield and test weight were unaffected by biofertilization”
t0“Common Wheat”
Claim · model-written summary
Biofertilization increased glutenin to gliadin and HMW to LMW ratios.
- Taxon
- common wheatTriticum aestivumt0
- Treatment
- biofertilizatione1
- Outcome
- glutenin-to-gliadin and HMW-to-LMW ratiose0
- Direction
- increasede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“both glutenin-to-gliadin and HMW-to-LMW ratios increased together with dough tenacity.”
t0“Common Wheat”
e1“Yield and test weight were unaffected by biofertilization”
Claim · model-written summary
Biofertilization increased dough tenacity.
- Taxon
- common wheatTriticum aestivumt0
- Treatment
- biofertilizatione1
- Outcome
- dough tenacitye0
- Direction
- increasede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“both glutenin-to-gliadin and HMW-to-LMW ratios increased together with dough tenacity.”
t0“Common Wheat”
e1“Yield and test weight were unaffected by biofertilization”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors conclude Methylobacterium can amplify wheat nitrogen metabolism at reduced N input.
- Taxon
- common wheatTriticum aestivumt0
- Interactor
- Methylobacterium symbioticumMethylobacterium symbioticume0symbiont
- Outcome
- reduce chemical fertilization under suboptimal growing conditionse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Methylobacterium symbioticum can amplify nitrogen metabolism at a reduced nitrogen dose, offering a viable approach to reduce chemical fertilization under suboptimal growing conditions”
t0“Common Wheat”
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