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Towards a mechanistic understanding of plant-soil feedbacks under heat and drought stress using metabolomics of root exudates


EMSL Project ID
60598

Abstract

Plant-microbe interactions are central to plant stress survival, but the mechanisms that underpin direct interactions are poorly understood. The release of C-rich root exudates is a key mechanism by which plants manage their rhizosphere microbiomes, attracting beneficial microbes and/or suppressing harmful microbes to help plants withstand environmental stress. A better understanding of how plants balance the cost-benefit of root exudate production under different environmental stresses is key to predicting plant responses to increases in heat and drought predicted for much of the intercontinental United States. We used a manipulative greenhouse study (completed September 2021) to examine the effects of drought and increased temperature on a native perennial bunchgrass, blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis), a species that accounts for the majority of net primary productivity in many semiarid grasslands. The goal of this work was to determine the effect of environmental stress on the abundance and composition of root exudates and the taxonomic and functional profile of the root microbiome. We quantified plant C allocation to growth and respiration using physiological measurements. To measure shifts in the root microbial community composition and potential function, we used targeted sequencing of the 16S and LSU rRNA genes, and are currently generating shotgun metagenomics and metatranscriptomics libraries to characterize functional shifts. To determine how stress-induced shifts in root exudate composition alter the root microbiome, we propose to characterize root exudate composition with metabolomics using mass spectrometry at EMSL.

Project Details

Project type
Limited Scope
Start Date
2022-11-15
End Date
2023-02-13
Status
Closed

Team

Principal Investigator

Rebecca Mueller
Institution
United States Department of Agriculture - Agricultural Research Service

Team Members

Hannah Goemann
Institution
Montana State University

Danielle Ulrich
Institution
Montana State University

Brent Peyton
Institution
Montana State University