Differential responses of Oryza sativa secondary metabolism to biotic interactions with cooperative, commensal and phytopathogenic bacteria

Abstract : Main conclusion Profiling of plant secondary metabolite allows to differentiate the different types of ecological interactions established between rice and bacteria. Rice responds to ecologically distinct bacteria by altering its content of flavonoids and hydroxycinnamic acid derivatives. Plants’ growth and physiology are strongly influenced by the biotic interactions that plants establish with soil bacterial populations. Plants are able to sense and to respond accordingly to ecologically distinct bacteria, by inducing defense pathways against pathogens to prevent parasitic interactions, and by stimulating the growth of root-associated beneficial or commensal bacteria through root exudation. Plant secondary metabolism is expected to play a major role in this control. However, secondary metabolite responses of a same plant to cooperative, commensal and deleterious bacteria have so far never been compared. The impact of the plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) Azospirillum lipoferum 4B on the secondary metabolite profiles of two Oryza sativa L. cultivars (Cigalon and Nipponbare) was compared to that of a rice pathogen Burkholderia glumae AU6208, the causing agent of bacterial panicle blight and of a commensal environmental bacteria Escherichia coli B6. Root and shoot rice extracts were analyzed by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). Principal component analyses (PCAs) pinpointed discriminant secondary metabolites, which were characterized by mass spectrometry. Direct comparison of metabolic profiles evidenced that each bacterial ecological interaction induced distinct qualitative and quantitative modifications of rice secondary metabolism, by altering the content of numerous flavonoid compounds and hydroxycinnamic acid (HCA) derivatives. Secondary metabolism varied according to the cultivars and the interaction types, demonstrating the relevance of secondary metabolic profiling for studying plant–bacteria biotic interactions.