Enhancement of growth in plants

Details Enhancement of growth in plants Enhancement of growth in plants

1998-01-26

2001-08-21

Benzion, Gary (Department: 1638)

Drug, bio-affecting and body treating compositions

Designated organic active ingredient containing

Peptide containing doai

C047S05810R, C800S288000

Reexamination Certificate

active

06277814

ABSTRACT:

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to the enhancement of growth in plants.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The improvement of plant growth by the application of organic fertilizers has been known and carried out for centuries (H. Marschner, “Mineral Nutrition of Higher Plants,” Academic Press: New York pg. 674 (1986). Modern man has developed a complex inorganic fertilizer production system to produce an easy product that growers and farmers can apply to soils or growing crops to improve performance by way of growth enhancement. Plant size, coloration, maturation, and yield may all be improved by the application of fertilizer products. Inorganic fertilizers include such commonly applied chemicals as ammonium nitrate. Organic fertilizers may include animal manures and composted lawn debris, among many other sources.
In most recent years, researchers have sought to improve plant growth through the use of biological products. Insect and disease control agents such as
Beauveria bassiana
and
Trichoderma harizamum
have been registered for the control of insect and disease problems and thereby indirectly improve plant growth and performance (Fravel et al., “Formulation of Microorganisms to Control Plant Diseases,” Formulation of Microbial Biopesticides, Beneficial Microorganisms, and Nematodes, H. D. Burges, ed. Chapman and Hall: London (1996).
There is some indication of direct plant growth enhancement by way of microbial application or microbial by-products. Nodulating bacteria have been added to seeds of leguminous crops when introduced to a new site (Weaver et al., “Rhizobium,”
Methods of Soil Analysis, Part
2,
Chemical and Microbiological Properties,
2nd ed., American Society of Agronomy: Madison (1982)). These bacteria may improve the nodulation efficiency of the plant and thereby improve the plant's ability to convert free nitrogen into a usable form, a process called nitrogen fixation. Non-leguminous crops do not, as a rule, benefit from such treatment. Added bacteria such as Rhizobium directly parasitize the root hairs, then begin a mutualistic relationship by providing benefit to the plant while receiving protection and sustenance.
Mycorrhizal fungi have also been recognized as necessary microorganisms for optional growth of many crops, especially conifers in nutrient-depleted soils. Mechanisms including biosynthesis of plant hormones (Frankenberger et al., “Biosynthesis of Indole-3-Acetic Acid by the Pine Ectomycorrhizal Fungas
Pisolithus tinctorius,” Appl. Environ. Microbiol.
53:2908-13 (1987)), increased uptake of minerals (Harley et al., “The Uptake of Phosphate by Excised Mycorrhizal Roots of Beech,”
New Phytologist
49:388-97 (1950) and Harley et al., “The Uptake of Phosphate by Excised Mycorrhizal Roots of Beech. IV. The Effect of Oxygen Concentration Upon Host and Fungus,”
New Phytologist
52:124-32 (1953)), and water (A. B. Hatch, “The Physical Basis of Mycotrophy in Pinus,”
Black Rock Forest Bull.
No. 6, 168 pp. (1937)) have been postulated. Mycorrhizal fungi have not achieved the common frequency of use that modulating bacteria have due to variable and inconsistent results with any given mycorrhizal strain and the difficulty of study of the organisms.
Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (“PGPR”) have been recognized in recent years for improving plant growth and development. Hypothetical mechanisms range from direct influences (e.g., increased nutrient uptake) to indirect mechanisms (e.g., pathogen displacement). Growth enhancement by application of a PGPR generally refers to inoculation with a live bacterium to the root system and achieving improved growth through bacterium-produced hormonal effects, siderophores, or by prevention of disease through antibiotic production, or competition. In all of the above cases, the result is effected through root colonization, sometimes through the application of seed coatings. There is limited information to suggest that some PGPR strains may be direct growth promoters that enhance root elongation under gnotobiotic conditions (Anderson et al., “Responses of Bean to Root Colonization With
Pseudomonas putida
in a Hydroponic System,”
Phytopathology
75:992-95 (1985), Lifshitz et al., “Growth Promotion of Canola (rapeseed) Seedlings by a Strain of
Pseudomonas putida
Under Gnotobiotic Conditions,”
Can. J. Microbiol.
33:390-95 (1987), Young et al., “PGPR: Is There Relationship Between Plant Growth Regulators and the Stimulation of Plant Growth or Biological Activity?,” Promoting Rhizobacteria: Progress and Prospects, Second International Workshop on Plant Growth-promoting Rhizobacteria, pp. 182-86 (1991), Loper et al., “Influence of Bacterial Sources of Indole-3-Acetic Acid on Root Elongation of Sugar Beet,”
Phytopathology
76:386-89 (1986), and Müller et al., “Hormonal Interactions in the Rhizosphere of Maize (
Zea mays
L.) and Their Effect on Plant Development,”
Z. Pflanzenernährung Bodenkunde
152:247-54 (1989); however, the production of plant growth regulators has been proposed as the mechanism mediating these effects. Many bacteria produce various plant growth regulators in vitro (Atzorn et al., “Production of Gibberellins and Indole-3-Acetic Acid by
Rhizobium phaseoli
in Relation to Nodulation of
Phaseolus vulgaris
Roots,”
Planta
175:532-38 (1988) and M. E. Brown, “Plant Growth Substances Produced by Micro-Organism of Solid and Rhizosphere,”
J. Appl. Bact.
35:443-51 (1972)) or antibiotics (Gardner et al., “Growth Promotion and Inhibition by Antibiotic-Producing Fluorescent Pseudomonads on Citrus Roots,”
Plant Soil
77:103-13 (1984)). Siderphore production is another mechanism proposed for some PGPR strains (Ahl et al., “Iron Bound-Siderophores, Cyanic Acid, and Antibiotics Involved in Suppression of
Thievaliopsis basicola
by a
Pseudomonas fluorescens
Strain,”
J. Phytopathol.
116:121-34 (1986), Kloepper et al., “Enhanced Plant Growth by Siderophores Produced by Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria,”
Nature
286:885-86 (1980), and Kloepper et al., “
Pseudomonas siderophores:
A Mechanism Explaining Disease-Suppressive Soils,”
Curr. Microbiol.
4:317-20 (1980)). The colonization of root surfaces and thus the direct competition with pathogenic bacteria on the surfaces is another mechanism of action (Kloepper et al., “Relationship of in vitro Antibiosis of Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria to Plant Growth and the Displacement of Root Microflora,”
Phytopathology
71:1020-24 (1981), Weller, et al., “Increased Growth of Wheat by Seed Treatments With Fluorescent Pseudomonads, and Implications of Pythium Control,”
Can. J. Microbiol.
8:328-34 (1986), and Suslow et al., “Rhizobacteria of Sugar Beets: Effects of Seed Application and Root Colonization on Yield,”
Phytopathology
72:199-206 (1982)). Canola (rapeseed) studies have indicated PGPR increased plant growth parameters including yields, seedling emergence and vigor, early-season plant growth (number of leaves and length of main runner), and leaf area (Kloepper et al., “Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria on Canola (rapeseed),”
Plant Disease
72:42-46 (1988)). Studies with potato indicated greater yields when Pseudomonas strains were applied to seed potatoes (Burr et al., “Increased Potato Yields by Treatment of Seed Pieces With Specific Strains of Pseudomonas Fluorescens and
P. putida,” Phytopathology
68:1377-83 (1978), Kloepper et al., “Effect of Seed Piece Inoculation With Plant Growth-Promoting Rhizobacteria on Populations of
Erwinia carotovora
on Potato Roots and in Daughter Tubers,”
Phytopathology
73:217-19 (1983), Geels et al., “Reduction of Yield Depressions in High Frequency Potato Cropping Soil After Seed Tuber Treatments With Antagonistic Fluorescent Pseudomonas spp.,”
Phytopathol. Z.
108:207-38 (1983), Howie et al., “Rhizobacteria: Influence of Cultivar and Soil Type on Plant Growth and Yield of Potato,”
Soil Biol. Biochem.
15:127-32 (1983), and Vrany et al., “Growth and Yield of Potato Plants Inoculated With Rhizosphere Bacteria,”
Folia Microbiol.
29:248-53 (1984)). Yield increase

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