Plant growth promoting bacteria promote rice growth cultivated in two different sandy soils subjected distinct climates conditions.

Sandy soils contain around 70% sand in their composition, making them highly fragile and susceptible to land degradation. Practices such as no-tillage cultivation, the use of bioinoculants, and the application of organic amendments can restore the organic matter in these soils, ensuring sustainable production. In this context, this work aimed to study the microbiological aspects of two sandy soil areas (Brazilian Northeast and South) under contrasting climatic conditions (tropical and temperate). With this purpose, prokaryotic communities were evaluated, and the plant growth-promoting potential of isolated bacteria was assessed by rice inoculation in sandy soil. Despite the high sand content in both soils, soil from the NE was related to the highest phosphorous, calcium, potassium, copper, sodium, zinc, magnesium, and manganese contents, organic matter percentage, and pH. The Shannon diversity index indicated that prokaryotic communities in NE were more diverse than in SU, and PCA revealed that microbial composition exhibited distinct patterns. The rice inoculation experiments were executed to verify if the bacterial isolates displayed a similar growth promotion potential when inoculated in sandy soil areas subjected to different climatic conditions. When all PGP characteristics evaluated were pooled in a PCA, a similar pattern was observed for SU and NE. Burkholderia sp. SU94 was related to highest PGP characteristics evaluated. Paraburkholderia sp. NE32 showed similar results to those of the non-inoculated control. This similar effect of rice growth in the Northeast and South of Brazil suggests that isolate SU94 adapts to different environmental conditions.

Isolation and identification of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria from Spinifex littoreus in Parangkusumo Coastal Sand Dunes, Indonesia.

Utilizing coastal land for agriculture presents challenges such as low water content, high soil salinity, and low organic compound content. To support plant growth under these conditions, biofertilizers composed of plant growth promoting Rhizobacteria (PGPR), especially those inhabiting coastal areas, are needed. The Parangkusumo sand dunes on the southern coast of Java, Indonesia, is a unique coastal ecosystem characterized by arid conditions, high temperatures, and high soil salinity. To date, no studies have reported the isolation of PGPR from this ecosystem. This study is the first to isolate and identify PGPR associated with Spinifex littoreus, a dominant plant species in the Parangkusumo sand dunes, which are adapted to the harsh condition of Parangkusumo sand dunes. Ten rhizobacterial isolates were obtained, with five identified as members of the Bacillaceae family. All isolates demonstrated phosphate solubilization activity, while seven exhibited cellulolytic activity. One isolate, Priestia aryabhattai strain 2, notably showed phosphate solubilization and nitrogen fixation activities. The findings of this PGPR activity screening offer valuable insights for developing biofertilizers tailored for coastal agricultural applications.

Wickerhamiella martinezcruziae f. a., sp. nov., a yeast species isolated from tropical habitats.

Four yeast isolates with an affinity to the genus Wickerhamiella were obtained from beach sand, a marine zoanthid and a tree exudate at different localities in Brazil. Two other isolates with almost identical ITS and D1/D2 sequences of the large subunit rRNA gene were isolated from the small intestine of cattle and a grease trap in Thailand. These isolates represent a novel species phylogenetically related to Wickerhamiella verensis, Wickerhamiella osmotolerans, Wickerhamiella tropicalis, Wickerhamiella sorbophila and Wickerhamiella infanticola. The novel species differs by 15-30 nucleotide differences from these species in the D1/D2 sequences. The name Wickerhamiella martinezcruziae f.a., sp. nov. is proposed. The holotype of Wickerhamiella martinezcruziae sp. nov. is CBS 16104T. The MycoBank number is MB 839328.

Enzyme activities in a sandy soil of Western Bahia under cotton production systems: short-term effects, temporal variability, and the FERTBIO sample concept.

Enzyme activities (EAs) and the FERTBIO sample concept have been increasingly adopted as a novel approach to estimate the soil quality in Brazil. However, the performance of this strategy in sandy soils of the Cerrado biome remains unclear. During 2 years, in a Cerrado's sandy soil, the short-term effects of ten different cropping systems (conventional tillage or no-tillage associated with monoculture, rotations, and/or successions) on the activities of ß-glucosidase, acid phosphatase, and arylsulfatase were studied. Issues related to annual variability and the feasibility of using the FERTBIO sample concept for soil enzymes activities were also evaluated. Soil samples were collected at three different depths (0-10 cm, 10-20 cm, and 20-40 cm) in March 2017 and February 2018. Five years since the beginning of the experiment, the presence of cover crops and no-till promoted improvements in EAs evidencing the importance of regenerative management practices for the sustainability of agroecosystems in sandy soils. Regardless of the cropping systems and depths evaluated, soil organic carbon and EAs showed low temporal variation during the 2 years of monitoring. Our results also showed that it is possible to use the FERTBIO sample concept for the Quartzipsament soils of Western Bahia, Brazil.

Non-lithifying microbial ecosystem dissolves peritidal lime sand.

Microbialites accrete where environmental conditions and microbial metabolisms promote lithification, commonly through carbonate cementation. On Little Ambergris Cay, Turks and Caicos Islands, microbial mats occur widely in peritidal environments above ooid sand but do not become lithified or preserved. Sediment cores and porewater geochemistry indicated that aerobic respiration and sulfide oxidation inhibit lithification and dissolve calcium carbonate sand despite widespread aragonite precipitation from platform surface waters. Here, we report that in tidally pumped environments, microbial metabolisms can negate the effects of taphonomically-favorable seawater chemistry on carbonate mineral saturation and microbialite development.

Children's public health: Danger of exposure to pathogenic fungi in recreational places in the middle-west region of Brazil.

BACKGROUND: Dermatophytes are keratinophilic fungi, considered etiological agents of cutaneous mycoses in man and animals. The objective of this work was to isolate dermatophytic and non-dermatophytic fungi in recreational sandboxes (rainy and dry periods) in public day-care centers located in the city of Cuiabá-MT (Middle-west of Brazil). METHODS: Samples (n=200) were collected from the superficial layer of the sandboxes at a depth of 2-5cm in 10 public nurseries in Cuiabá-MT. Hair baits measuring 1-2cm were autoclaved and dispersed in 50g of the sample in sterile plates, incubated at 28°C, moistened with chloramphenicol solution (50mg/L). After 6 weeks the baits were inoculated on Sabouraud agar plus 50mg/L chloramphenicol and 500mg/L cycloheximide. The fungi were identified according to macroscopic and micromorphological characteristics. RESULTS: From the collected sand samples, 1318 colonies and 56 species of fungi belonging to 22 genera were isolated. The most important genera were Paecilomyces spp. (30.42%), Penicillium spp. (19.12%), Fusarium spp. (11.46%) and Aspergillus spp. (11.15%). Dermatophytes were recovered in 50% of day-care centers in a total of 29 identified colonies, the Trichophyton genus (86.2%) being the most frequently isolated. CONCLUSIONS: The dermatophytes in the recreational areas of day-care centers can pose a risk to the health of its users, especially for children and the employees. Work with this profile is very important to guide actions related to health surveillance.