Induced systemic resistance against Pythium aphanidermatum by plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria on cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.)

Abstract

Cucumber root rot caused by Pythium aphanidermatum can be suppressed by introduced plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR). Preliminary experiments clarified that this root disease could be suppressed by strains of Pseudomonas aureofaciens, P. corrugata, and P. fluorescens. To determine whether the mechanism was a systemic resistance induced by PGPR, a split root technique was employed on greenhouse cucumbers grown in soilless substrates. On the split roots, bacteria which were introduced into one side of the root were completely separated from pathogen challenged-inoculated roots-on the other side of the roots. Results from the series of experiments conducted with this design demonstrated that (i) the resistance against root rot induced by PGPR was systemic, (ii) germination of P. aphanidermatum zoospores was reduced in extracts from bacterized roots compared to non-treated control, and (iii) spread of Pythium mycelia was delayed and zoospore germination was inhibited on the distant induced root, compared to the non-bacterized control. Furthermore, enzyme analysis indicated that phenylalanine ammonia lyase, peroxidase and polyphenoloxidase increased on cucumber roots two days after they were bacterized with Pseudomonas strains 13 or 63--28. When the bacterized roots were challenged with P. aphanidermatum, these plant defense enzymes increased as the symptoms appeared, but this accumulation of enzymes was not any higher on roots induced with each of the Pseudomonas strains compared to the Pythium inoculated control. This enzyme stimulation was also systemically induced by PGPR or P. aphanidermatum on cucumber roots. The patterns of iso-peroxidase induced with the PGPR and P. aphanidermatum treatments were different. High levels of salicylic acid (SA) accumulated in bacteria-induced roots, as well as in pathogen-infected roots, which suggests that SA may be associated with cucumber resistance response. But exogenous application of SA did not induce any system