Streptomyces improves sugarcane drought tolerance by enhancing phenylalanine biosynthesis and optimizing the rhizosphere environment.

Drought stress is a common hazard faced by sugarcane growth, and utilizing microorganisms to enhance plant tolerance to abiotic stress has become an important method for sustainable agricultural development. Several studies have demonstrated that Streptomyces chartreuses WZS021 improves sugarcane tolerance to drought stress. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying tolerance at the transcriptional and metabolomic levels remain unclear. We comprehensively evaluated the physiological and molecular mechanisms by which WZS021 enhances drought tolerance in sugarcane, by performing transcriptome sequencing and non-targeted metabolomics; and examining rhizosphere soil properties and plant tissue antioxidant capacity. WZS021 inoculation improved the rhizosphere nutritional environment (AP, ammonia, OM) of sugarcane and enhanced the antioxidant capacity of plant roots, stems, and leaves (POD, SOD, CAT). Comprehensive analyses of the transcriptome and metabolome revealed that WZS021 mainly affects plant drought tolerance through phenylalanine metabolism, plant hormone signal transduction, and flavonoid biosynthesis pathways. The drought tolerance signaling molecules mediated by WZS021 include petunidin, salicylic acid, α-Linoleic acid, auxin, geranylgeraniol and phenylalanine, as well as key genes related to plant hormone signaling transduction (YUCCA, amiE, AUX, CYPs, PAL, etc.). Interestingly, inoculation with WZS021 during regular watering induces a transcriptome-level response to biological stress in sugarcane plants. This study further elucidates a WZS021-dependent rhizosphere-mediated regulatory mechanism for improving sugarcane drought tolerance, providing a theoretical basis for increasing sugarcane production capacity.