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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Microbe and Virus Interactions with Plants
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2025.1551310
Screening, molecular identification, and evaluation the effects of indigenous Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR) on growth indices and nutrient uptake of chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) under saline conditions
Provisionally accepted- 1Islamic Azad University, Marvdasht, Marvdasht, Iran
- 2Islamic Azad University, Larestan, Lar, Fars, Iran
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Introduction: Salinity is a major issue affecting agricultural lands, leading to reduced crop productivity and soil degradation. One approach to mitigate the effects of salinity is utilizing PGPR. This study aimed to isolate and identify indigenous PGPR from rhizosphere soil and evaluate their effects on the growth indices of chamomile under saline conditions. Methods: 45 rhizosphere soil samples were collected from agricultural fields in Beyram, Iran. The PGPR were isolated and identified using standard phenotypic, biochemical, and molecular assays.Plant growth-promoting traits were applied for PGPR strain screening. The effects of selected PGPR strains on the growth indices and nutrient uptake of chamomile under saline conditions were evaluated in a greenhouse experiment.Results and discussion: A total of 181 bacterial isolates were identified from the 45 soil samples, belonging to 8 genera and 13 species. Seven species, including B. cereus, P. fluorescens, P. syringae, A. radiotolerans, P. phenanthrenivorans, P. alcaliphila, and L. macroides, possessing all five growth-promoting characteristics, were selected for further experiments. PGPR treatments significantly improved chamomile's growth, biochemical parameters, and nutrient uptake under different salinity levels. The P1 treatment at 2 dS.m -1 salinity had the highest root (16.75 cm) and shoot length (32.91 cm), along with dry root (0.089 grams) and shoot weight (1.67 grams).Biochemical improvements included higher chlorophyll and essential oil content with P2 at 2 dS.m -1 . Increased salinity decreased overall plant growth and nutrient uptake. The indigenous PGPR strains showed promising potential to enhance chamomile growth and nutrient status under salt stress, offering a sustainable strategy for improving crop productivity in saline-affected regions.
Keywords: Salinity, PGPR, Matricaria chamomilla, rhizosphere soil, Growth indices, 16SrRNA
Received: 03 Jan 2025; Accepted: 17 Apr 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Tafaroji, Abtahi, Jafarinia and Ebadi. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Seyed Ali Abtahi, Islamic Azad University, Marvdasht, Marvdasht, Iran
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