PGPR MEDIATED BIO-FORTIFICATION OF TOMATO FRUIT METABOLITES WITH NUTRITIONAL AND PHARMACOLOGICAL IMPORTANCE

Abstract

There is a growing interest in producing food plants with increased nutritional and medicinal values. The purpose of this study was biofortification of nutritionally and pharmacologically important metabolites of tomato fruits by using a PGPR strain “Pseudomonas aeruginosa PM12”. Tomato plants were co-cultivated in the presence of this bacterial strain and changes in fruit metabolites were discovered. Metabolites were quantified and identified by performing GC/MS analysis. The fruit extracts from the tomato plants receiving bacterial strains showed significant up-regulations in quantities of sugars, flavonoids, terpenoids, carotenoids, and total phenolic contents. Principal component analysis well separated both treatment groups to show their significant effects. In support of these findings, metabolomic changes were incorporated in primary metabolic pathways to show that upon exposure to this beneficial bacterial strain, extensive re-modulations were induced in the bio-synthesis pathways of sugars, phenolics, carbohydrates and amino acids. These results suggest that application of Pseudomonas aeruginosa PM12 can induce plants for increased production of various bioactive compounds.