Surveillance of Root-associated Microbiome of Oxalogenic Colocasia esculenta (Linn) Plant Reveals Distinct Bacterial Species Diversity

Oxalic acids are widely distributed in tissues of various plants that can exacerbate the effect on other plant-grazing animals including humans. Bacterial communities had been demonstrated to specify with the rhizosphere of host type and which can differ with oxalogenic plant. The present study has been conducted with the primary objective of understanding the root-associated microbial communities in Colocasia esculenta, an oxalogenic plant and to recognize possible bacterial species that present the potential of having their capability to metabolize oxalates. Of the 852 sequences obtained, 311 corresponded to rhizosphere (S), 250 to rhizoplane (P) and 291 were from non-rhizospheric (NS) soil. Flavobacteriaceae, Enterobacteriaceae, Moraxellaceae and Pseudomonadaceae were the major contributors in the rhizoplane microbial community assemblage. Paenibacillaceae was the major contributor to the rhizospheric microbial community. The findings of the study showed that the rhizoplane, owing to the characteristic root exudates, has a distinctive composition of microbial partners as compared to the rhizosphere and bulk soil communities.