Beatriz Lagunas, Luke Richards , Chrysi Sergaki, Jamie Burgess, Alonso Javier Pardal, Rana M. F. Hussain, Bethany L. Richmond, Laura Baxter, Proyash Roy, Anastasia Pakidi, Gina Stovold, Saúl Vázquez , Sascha Ott , Patrick Schäfer and Miriam L. Gifford

Despite the knowledge that the soil–plant–microbiome nexus is shaped by interactions amongst its members, very little is known about how individual symbioses regulate this shaping. Even less is known about how the agriculturally important symbiosis of nitrogen-fixing rhizobia with legumes is impacted according to soil type, yet this knowledge is crucial if we are to harness or improve it. We asked how the plant, soil and microbiome are modulated by symbiosis between the model legume Medicago truncatula and different strains of Sinorhizobium meliloti or Sinorhizobium medicae whose nitrogen-fixing efficiency varies, in three distinct soil types that differ in nutrient fertility, to examine the role of the soil environment upon the plant–microbe interaction during nodulation. We concluded the microbiome–soil–rhizobial dynamic strongly influences plant nutrient uptake and growth, with the endosphere and rhizosphere shaped differentially according to plant–rhizobial interactions with strains that vary in nitrogen-fixing efficiency levels. These results open up the possibility to select inoculation partners best suited for plant, soil type and microbial community.

Microbiome. July 2023

Press Release