Diazotrophic Endophytes: Symbionts for environmentally sustainable agriculture
L. HANNON (1), D. Melville (2), S. Doty (2) (1) University of Washington, U.S.A.; (2) University of Washington, U.S.A.

Human population levels are anticipated to reach 11 billion by 2100. The United Nations predicts that food production must increase by 70% to feed this projected level of growth. Changing weather conditions and limited natural resources such as water, arable land, and soil nutrients already constrain the expansion of global agriculture. To meet current demands, agriculture is highly dependent on chemical inputs such as N- and P-based fertilizers. However, this dependence on chemical inputs is not economically or environmentally sustainable as these industrial fertilizers negatively impact the environment through both their production and use. Plant-associated microorganisms can increase nutrient availability and plant growth. Endophytes, microorganisms within plants, isolated from organic Coffea arabica plants were screened for N-fixation, phosphate solubilization, siderophore production, and auxin production. These endophytes were shown to increase biomass and yield when cross-inoculated into other species including tomato, peppers, and corn. N-fixation by these endophytes will be indirectly assessed via the acetylene reduction assay. 16s rDNA identification of these microbes is underway. The future of sustainable agriculture greatly depends on the ability to enhance crop yield while protecting the future production potential of arable croplands. Further insight into the processes involved in biological N-fixation could mitigate negative impacts to global agriculture. 

Abstract Number: P2-28
Session Type: Poster