Horticulture Research

Soil microbiota has increasingly been shown to play an integral role in viticulture resilience. The emergence of new metagenomic and culturomic technologies has led to significant advances in the study of microbial biodiversity. In the agricultural sector, soil and plant microbiomes have been found to significantly improve resistance to environmental stressors and diseases, as well as influencing crop yields and fruit quality thus improving sustainability under shifting environments. Grapevines are usually cultivated as a scion grafted on rootstocks, which are selected according to pedoclimatic conditions and cultural practices, known as terroir. The rootstock connects the surrounding soil to the vine’s aerial part and impacts scion growth and berry quality. Understanding rootstock and soil microbiome dynamics is a relevant and important field of study, which may be critical to improve viticulture sustainability and resilience. This review aims to highlight the relationship between grapevine roots and telluric microbiota diversity and activity. In addition, this review explores the concept of core microbiome regarding potential applications of soil microbiome engineering with the goal of enhancing grapevine adaptation to biotic and abiotic stress

Soil composition and rootstock genotype drive the root associated microbial communities in young grapevines

Soil microbiota plays a significant role in plant development and health and appears to be a major component of certain forms of grapevine decline. A greenhouse experiment was conducted to study the impact of the microbiological quality of the soil and grapevine rootstock genotype on the root microbial community and development of young plants. Two rootstocks heterografted with the same scion were grown in two vineyard soils differing in microbial composition and activities. After 4 months, culture-dependent approaches and amplicon sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA gene and fungal ITS were performed on roots, rhizosphere and bulk soil samples. The root mycorrhizal colonization and number of cultivable microorganisms in the rhizosphere compartment of both genotypes were clearly influenced by the soil status. The fungal diversity and richness were dependent on the soil status and the rootstock, whereas bacterial richness was affected by the genotype only. Fungal genera associated with grapevine diseases were more abundant in declining soil and related root samples. The rootstock affected the compartmentalization of microbial communities, underscoring its influence on microorganism selection. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) confirmed the presence of predominant root-associated bacteria. These results emphasized the importance of rootstock genotype and soil composition in shaping the microbiome of young vines

Grapevine decline is associated with difference in soil microbial composition and activity

Grapevine decline is a top concern in viticulture worldwide and is often associated with many biotic and abiotic factors. Grape trunk diseases and viruses are some of the most frequently identified causes of vine dieback. However, a decline is sometimes observed when no mineral deficiency or excess, or pathogenic causes can be identified. Soil enzymatic and microbial activities are relevant bio-indicators since they are known to influence vine health. Grapevine associated microbiota, linked to vine fitness, is known to be influenced by soil microbiota coming from the microbial pool inhabiting the vineyard. This work describes the microbial diversity and activity of four different vineyard plots of the Bordeaux region, selected due to the presence of localised declining areas unexplained yet by disease symptoms. Soils were sampled in declining areas and areas within the same plot showing no decline symptoms, during autumn and spring periods. Significant differences in enzymatic activities, microbial biomass and activity were found among soils even if those soils presented quite similar physicochemical characteristics that could not explain these observed declines. The results of enzymatic assays distinguished patterns in autumn and spring periods with an overall greater enzymatic activity in soils from non-declining areas. This work suggests that soils displaying decline symptoms present a dysbiosis in functionality and diversity which is linked to vine health

High intraspecific variation of the cell surface physico-chemical and bioadhesion properties in Brettanomyces bruxellensis

Brettanomyces bruxellensis is the most damaging spoilage yeast in the wine industry because of its negative impact on the wine organoleptic qualities. The strain persistence in cellars over several years associated with recurrent wine contamination suggest specific properties to persist and survive in the environment through bioadhesion phenomena. In this work, the physico-chemical surface properties, morphology and ability to adhere to stainless steel were studied both on synthetic medium and on wine. More than 50 strains representative of the genetic diversity of the species were considered. Microscopy techniques made it possible to highlight a high morphological diversity of the cells with the presence of pseudohyphae forms for some genetic groups. Analysis of the physico-chemical properties of the cell surface reveals contrasting behaviors: most of the strains display a negative surface charge and hydrophilic behavior while the Beer 1 genetic group has a hydrophobic behavior. All strains showed bioadhesion abilities on stainless steel after only 3 h with differences in the concentration of bioadhered cells ranging from 2.2 × 102 cell/cm2 to 7.6 × 106 cell/cm2. Finally, our results show high variability of the bioadhesion properties, the first step in the biofilm formation, according to the genetic group with the most marked bioadhesion capacity for the beer group. © 2023 The Author

Front Microbiol

Brettanomyces bruxellensis is the main spoilage microbial agent in red wines. The use of fungal chitosan has been authorized since 2009 as a curative treatment to eliminate this yeast in conventional wines and in 2018 in organic wines. As this species is known to exhibit great genetic and phenotypic diversity, we examined whether all the strains responded the same way to chitosan treatment. A collection of 53 strains of was used. In the conditions of the reference test, all were at least temporarily affected by the addition of chitosan to wine, with significant decrease of cultivable population. Some (41%) were very sensitive and no cultivable yeast was detected in wine or lees after 3 days of treatment, while others (13%) were tolerant and, after a slight drop in cultivability, resumed growth between 3 and 10 days and remained able to produce spoilage compounds. There were also many strains with intermediate behavior. The strain behavior was only partially linked to the strain genetic group. This behavior was little modulated by the physiological state of the strain or the dose of chitosan used (within the limits of the authorized doses). On the other hand, for a given strain, the sensitivity to chitosan treatment was modulated by the chitosan used and by the properties of the wine in which the treatment was carried out.Recherches sur l’origine et les effets secondaires des propriétés stabilisantes du chitosane fongique dans le vi

Effect of high-pressure treatment on polyphenoloxidase activity of the Agaricus Bisporus Mushroom

High pressure treatments (100-500 Mpa/4 °C/10 min) were carried out on freshly sliced mushrooms ( Agaricus bisporus ) and on liquid extract. Pressure above 200 MPa led to respiratory activity loss, significant enzymatic browning and polyphenoloxidase (PPO) activation in treated mushrooms. Increasing pressure from 200 to 500 MPa enhanced the PPO activation (in whole tissue and in liquid extract). Stabilization of mushroom by high-pressure (HP) alone cannot be considered. A combination of HP with thermal or chemical treatments is found necessary

High pressure inactivation of Pseudomonas in black truffle - comparison with Pseudomonas fluorescens in tryptone soya broth

Pseudomonas is one of the most common genera in black Perigord truffle. Its inactivation by high pressure (100-500 MPa/10 min) applied on truffles at sub-zero or low temperatures was studied and compared with those of Pseudomonas fluorescens in tryptone soya broth. Pressurization of truffles at 300 MPa/4 °C reduced the bacterial count of Pseudomonas by 5.3 log cycles. Higher pressures of 400 or 500 MPa, at 4 °C or 20 °C, allowed us to slightly increase the level of destruction to the value of ca. 6.5 log cycles but did not permit us to completely inactivate Pseudomonas. The results showed a residual charge of about 10 CFU/g. Pressure-shift freezing of truffles, which consists in applying a pressure of 200 MPa/-18 °C for 10 min and then quickly releasing this pressure to induce freezing, reduced the population of Pseudomonas by 3.3 log cycles. The level of inactivation was higher than those obtained with conventional freezing. Endogenous Pseudomonas in truffle was shown to be more resistant to high pressure treatments than P. fluorescens used for inoculation of broths

Am. j. enol. vitic.

Brettanomyces bruxellensis is a spoilage yeast particularly dreaded in red wines, where it produces volatile phenols with sensory properties that lead to wine spoilage. The development of this yeast often occurs during wine aging, especially during the summer. We show that in the Bordeaux region, the temperatures of some cellars rise significantly in July, August, and September. This greatly increases the growth rate of B. bruxellensis strains in both permissive and more unfavorable wines. Therefore, although temperature does not affect the specific formation rate of ethyl phenol, raising the wine temperature from 2 to 6 degrees C makes volatile phenols appear both earlier and faster, regardless of the wine or the yeast strain present. Closer control of active yeast populations and closer monitoring of aging wines is thus essential in the summer, particularly in cellars with poor temperature regulation

Mol Ecol

Human-associated microorganisms are ideal models to study the impact of environmental changes on species evolution and adaptation because of their small genome, short generation time, and their colonization of contrasting and ever-changing ecological niches. The yeast Brettanomyces bruxellensis is a good example of organism facing anthropogenic-driven selective pressures. It is associated with fermentation processes in which it can be considered either as a spoiler (e.g., winemaking, bioethanol production) or as a beneficial microorganism (e.g., production of specific beers, kombucha). In addition to its industrial interests, noteworthy parallels and dichotomies with Saccharomyces cerevisiae propelled B. bruxellensis as a valuable complementary yeast model. In this review, we emphasize that the broad genetic and phenotypic diversity of this species is only beginning to be uncovered. Population genomic studies have revealed the coexistence of auto- and allotriploidization events with different evolutionary outcomes. The different diploid, autotriploid and allotriploid subpopulations are associated with specific fermented processes, suggesting independent adaptation events to anthropized environments. Phenotypically, B. bruxellensis is renowned for its ability to metabolize a wide variety of carbon and nitrogen sources, which may explain its ability to colonize already fermented environments showing low-nutrient contents. Several traits of interest could be related to adaptation to human activities (e.g., nitrate metabolization in bioethanol production, resistance to sulphite treatments in winemaking). However, phenotypic traits are insufficiently studied in view of the great genomic diversity of the species. Future work will have to take into account strains of varied substrates, geographical origins as well as displaying different ploidy levels to improve our understanding of an anthropized yeast's phenotypic landscape.Approche multi-échelle de l'adaptation de la levure Brettanomyces bruxellensis aux procédés fermentaire