Artificial selection of stable rhizosphere microbiota leads to heritable plant phenotype changes. (8th November 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Jacquiod, Samuel; Spor, Aymé; Wei, Shaodong; Munkager, Victoria; Bru, David; Sørensen, Søren J.; Salon, Christophe; Philippot, Laurent; Blouin, Manuel
• Editors: Selosse, Marc‐André
• Is Part Of: Ecology letters. Volume 25:Number 1(2022)
• Page Start: 189
• Page End: 201
• Publication Date: 2021-11-08
• Subjects: evolution -- group selection -- heritability -- interaction -- microbiota -- plant‐microbe interaction -- stability; Ecology -- Periodicals; 577
• DOI: 10.1111/ele.13916
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1461-023X

Abstract

Abstract: Artificial selection of microbiota opens new avenues for improving plants. However, reported results lack consistency. We hypothesised that the success in artificial selection of microbiota depends on the stabilisation of community structure. In a ten‐generation experiment involving 1, 800 plants, we selected rhizosphere microbiota of Brachypodium distachyon associated with high or low leaf greenness, a proxy of plant performance. The microbiota structure showed strong fluctuations during an initial transitory phase, with no detectable leaf greenness heritability. After five generations, the microbiota structure stabilised, concomitantly with heritability in leaf greenness. Selection, initially ineffective, did successfully alter the selected property as intended, especially for high selection. We show a remarkable correlation between the variability in plant traits and selected microbiota structures, revealing two distinct sub‐communities associated with high or low leaf greenness, whose abundance was significantly steered by directional selection. Understanding microbiota structure stabilisation will improve the reliability of artificial microbiota selection. Abstract : We found that artificial selection of microbiota for their impact on plant phenotype became efficient when community structure has stabilized during the selection process. We found two distinct phases: an initial transitory phase featuring important fluctuations of the microbiota structure, with no heritability of the selected property, followed by a stabilization phase where the microbiota structure stabilized and the selected property became hertitable. Understanding the conditions leading to microbial community stabilization will be important in this field of research.