The proposal outlines a study on the effects of heavy metal (HM) pollution on plant-associated bacteria in Arctic ecosystems during seasonal changes. HM introduced via metal-generating industries pose serious threat to biodiversity and environmental protection as they do not degrade in the soil, which either diminishes soil quality unsuitable for diverse lifeforms or is absorbed by plants which is then ingested by animals. Apart from a few studies in tropical agroecosystems, the effect of HM-pollution on plant-associated microbes in natural ecosystems with extreme seasonal variations remains understudied. The study aims to answer three research questions: (1) What is the difference in bacterial community composition of Arctic plants growing in HM-polluted and unpolluted soil in summer and winter? (2) How does bacteria, isolated from plants under heavy metal stress, tolerate heavy metal pollution? (3) What is the efficacy of using HM-tolerant plant-bacteria isolated from HM-stressed plants growing in extreme climate, to enhance the fitness of plants for agricultural areas under heavy metal pollution? The methodology consists of microbial DNA extraction, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR), and targeted 16S rRNA genes sequencing to answer the first research question while bacterial isolation, bacterial genome sequencing and plant-inoculation experiments to answer the other two research questions. The samples will be collected from the long-term field experiment simulating acid rain and pollution loads from heavy metals at the Kevo sub-arctic research station (University of Turku) Finland. This study will contribute to the understanding of plant-microbe interactions under environmental stress caused by human activities. The proposed research can be applied to develop economical, eco-friendly microbe-assisted sustainable approaches to enhance plant growth in HM-polluted agricultural areas, improve biodiversity and protect HM-polluted natural ecosystems near HM-industries.

2023

2025