Data underlying the publication: Beetroot and Spinach Seed Microbiomes Can Suppress Pythium ultimum Infection; Results from a Large-Scale Screening
doi: 10.4121/20004842

Seed health is an indispensable prerequisite of food security. While the toolkit of plant protection products is currently limited, evidence suggests that the seed microbiome could protect seeds from pathogens. Thus, given their possible disease suppressive potential, we tested 11 different pathosystems to achieve the following proof-of-concept: seed microbiomes can be beneficial for seed health through conferring disease suppression. This study focused on beetroot, onion, spinach, pepper, coriander, red fescue and perennial ryegrass seeds, with each crop being challenged with one or two from a total of six pathogens, namely Pythium ultimum (or a Pythium sp.), Setophoma terrestris, Fusarium oxysporum, Phytophthora capsici, Laetisaria fuciformis and a mix of Puccinia sp. isolates. Each seed lot of each crop was tested with and without treatment with a disinfectant as a proxy for comparing intact seed microbiomes with seed microbiomes after partial elimination by disinfection. We found disease suppression in two pathosystems. Beetroot and spinach seed lots were able to suppress disease caused by P. ultimum when their microbiomes were intact but not after seed disinfection. We speculate that this relates to the microorganisms residing on and in the seed. Yet, seed microbiome disease suppression was not found in all pathosystems, highlighting the variation in seed morphology, plant cultivars, pathogens and seed disinfection treatments. A holistic understanding of the characteristics of seeds that harbour suppressive microbiomes as well as the pathogens that are sensitive to suppression, could lead to more targeted and informed seed processing and treatment and, consequently, to the sustainable management of seedling diseases.
- 2022-07-10 first online
- 2022-08-25 published, posted
- LWV19097; Top Sector Horticulture and Propagation Materials
Soil Biology Group, Wageningen University and Research, The Netherlands
Bejo Zaden B.V., Warmenhuizen, The Netherlands
DLF B.V., Kapelle, The Netherlands
Pop Vriend Seeds B.V., Andijk, The Netherlands
Nunhems Netherlands B.V. (BASF), The Netherlands
CN seeds Ltd., United Kingdom
Germains Seed Technology, The Netherlands
Department of Microbial Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology, Wageningen, the Netherlands
DATA
- 2,328 bytes md5 Pepper_seeds_4Rdata.csv
- 4,845 bytes md5 Perennial_puccinia_4Rdata.csv
- 4,845 bytes md5 Perennial_thread_4Rdata.csv
- 4,845 bytes md5 Red_fescue_4Rdata.csv
- 5,777 bytes md5 Spinach_4Rgermination.csv
- 6,457 bytes md5 Spinach4R_data.csv
- 2,599 bytes md5 SpinachFusarium_4Rdata.csv
- 35,591 bytes md5 01 data analysis.R
- 7,000 bytes md5 01b data dispersion.R
- 16,065 bytes md5 02 data analysis.R
- 2,797 bytes md5 06c combine Suppl.Fig.1.R
- 1,802 bytes md5 summarySE_function.R
- 21,963 bytes md5 .Rhistory
- 3,243 bytes md5 README_Diakaki_et_al.txt
- 7,081 bytes md5 Beetroot_4Rgermination.csv
- 7,363 bytes md5 Beetroot4R_data.csv
- 6,118 bytes md5 Coriander_4Rgermination.csv
- 7,444 bytes md5 Coriander4R_data.csv
- 5,809 bytes md5 Onion_4Rgermination.csv
- 6,028 bytes md5 Onion4R_data.csv
- 2,739 bytes md5 OnionPhoma_4Rdata.csv
- 5,686 bytes md5 OnionPhoma_SpinachFusarium.csv
- 1,072 bytes md5 Pepper_4Rgermination.csv
- 23,121 bytes md5 Pepper_plant_4Rdata.csv
- 6,450 bytes md5 03 data analysis and Fig.2.R
- 2,667 bytes md5 04 make Fig.1.R
- 26,487 bytes md5 05a make Fig.3.R
- 23,919 bytes md5 05b make Fig.3.R
- 19,135 bytes md5 06a make Suppl.Fig.1 continuous.R
- 25,667 bytes md5 06b make Suppl.Fig.1 ordinal.R
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