Drought and host selection influence bacterial community dynamics in the grass root microbiome

Root endophytes have been shown to have important roles in determining host fitness under periods of drought stress, and yet the effect of drought on the broader root endosphere bacterial community remains largely uncharacterized. In this study, we present phylogenetic profiles of bacterial communities associated with drought-treated root and rhizosphere tissues of 18 species of plants with varying degrees of drought tolerance belonging to the Poaceae family, including important crop plants. Through 16S rRNA gene profiling across two distinct watering regimes and two developmental time points, we demonstrate that there is a strong correlation between host phylogenetic distance and the microbiome dissimilarity…

• UD
  U.S. Department of Agriculture

  Awards: CRIS 2030-21430-008-00D, 2030-21430-008-00D
• AR
  Agricultural Research Service

  Award: 2030-21430-008-00D