Effect of encapsulated pseudomonas putida Rs-198 strain on alleviating salt stress of cotton

ABSTRACT

The present investigation was carried out to determine the inter-relationship between some physiological attributes of cotton and encapsulated Rs-198 strain. The pot experiment had seven treatments (with or without encapsulated bacteria under different salt stress conditions, 10 replicates) and was carried out in the greenhouse during April–June 2014. Pot results showed that the inoculated encapsulated Rs-198 significantly increased the plant biomass under 0.5% salt stress. Besides, an approximately 19.47% increase in the soluble protein content of cotton with encapsulated Rs-198 inoculated in salt condition and relatively higher chlorophylls a, b and carotenoid concentrations of 0.626, 0.304, and 0.564 mg/g, respectively, were maintained. The proline content and peroxidase activity in cotton plants inoculated Rs-198 under 0.5% salt stress of were reduced by 42.30% and by 24.98%, respectively. In conclusion, application of encapsulated Rs-198 strain was effective in relieving salt stress under saline conditions. microcapsule bioinoculants are potential alternatives for sustainable agriculture due to their low cost of production.

KEYWORDS:

• alleviate salt stress
• microencapsulation
• plant growth promoting
• P. putida Rs-198
• cotton

Funding

This study was financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (31260022, 21566035), Science and Technology Fund Projects of Shihezi University (2013ZRKXJQ01).