Muzami Eugene Mwanza, Kitundu George, Muriithi Oscar Mwaura, Kavoo Agnes Mumo, Gichuru Virginia Gathoni, Mbinda Wilton Mwema
Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Pwani University, Kilifi, Kenya.
Department of Biological Sciences, Pwani University, Kilifi, Kenya.
Front Microbiol. 2025 May 30;16:1582271. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2025.1582271. eCollection 2025.
Microbes inhabiting the banana rhizosphere are varied and mediate essential functions that enhance plant growth and increase crop productivity. Their abundance in soil habitats is a potential indicator of soil health and quality. Despite the well-known benefits of rhizosphere microorganisms in banana cultivation, their genomic and functional diversity remains largely unexplored within smallholder agroecosystems. In this study, we characterized the community composition and functional potential of bacteria in banana rhizospheric soils from Gituamba, Mangu and Ngenda constituencies in Kiambu County, Kenya. Using Illumina Novaseq sequencing, we analyzed 16S rRNA gene amplicons and shotgun metagenomic profiles to explore these microbial communities. Variations of soil physicochemical parameters across the study sites were assessed. The parameters varied across the sites, with soils in Gituamba and Ngenda depicting better soil fertility characteristics than Mangu. Amplicon sequencing profiles revealed higher bacterial diversity in Gituamba compared to Mangu, while the single sample from Ngenda exhibited moderate diversity. The dominant phyla across the study sites were , and . Functional profiling of 16S rRNA gene amplicons showed a higher enrichment in Gituamba compared to Mangu. Overall, the functional profiling indicated that predicted metabolic pathways across the study sites were linked to genes encoded by the members of the most abundant bacterial phyla in the soil environments, majorly contributing to beneficial roles for soil health and crop yield. This study offers methods to reveal the banana rhizosphere as a rich reservoir for potential microbes of agricultural and biotechnological significance, which can promote sustainable agriculture.
栖息在香蕉根际的微生物种类繁多，它们介导着促进植物生长和提高作物产量的重要功能。它们在土壤生境中的丰度是土壤健康和质量的一个潜在指标。尽管根际微生物在香蕉种植中有诸多益处，但在小农户农业生态系统中，它们的基因组和功能多样性在很大程度上仍未得到探索。在本研究中，我们对肯尼亚基安布县吉图amba、曼古和恩根达选区香蕉根际土壤中的细菌群落组成和功能潜力进行了表征。使用Illumina Novaseq测序技术，我们分析了16S rRNA基因扩增子和鸟枪法宏基因组图谱，以探索这些微生物群落。评估了研究地点土壤理化参数的变化。各地点的参数有所不同，吉图amba和恩根达的土壤肥力特征比曼古更好。扩增子测序图谱显示，吉图amba的细菌多样性高于曼古，而恩根达的单个样本表现出中等多样性。研究地点的优势菌门为 、 和 。16S rRNA基因扩增子的功能分析表明，吉图amba的富集程度高于曼古。总体而言，功能分析表明，研究地点预测的代谢途径与土壤环境中最丰富细菌门成员编码的基因相关，主要有助于土壤健康和作物产量的有益作用。本研究提供了揭示香蕉根际作为具有农业和生物技术意义的潜在微生物丰富库的方法，这可以促进可持续农业。
