The effects of pesticides on the diversity of culturable soil bacteria

A - Papers appearing in refereed journals

Nicholson, P. S. and Hirsch, P. R. 1998. The effects of pesticides on the diversity of culturable soil bacteria. Journal of Applied Microbiology. 84 (4), pp. 551-558. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2672.1998.00381.x

AuthorsNicholson, P. S. and Hirsch, P. R.
Abstract

The numbers of culturable soil bacteria in plots that had received either no pesticides or the full combination (aldicarb, chlorfenvinphos, benomyl, glyphosate, plus chlorotoluron or triadimefon) over a 20 year period were compared. Differences were very small although there were consistently higher numbers on the treated plot, possibly reflecting the greater crop yields which had been reported previously. There was no significant difference in numbers of bacterial colonies with homology to a nif gene probe in soils from the two plots. Genetic fingerprinting of Pseudomonas fluorescens isolates from the plots, using ERIC-PCR, showed that the dominant strains in the two populations were not the same although there was no obvious difference in the degree of diversity. Substrate utilization by microbial populations from the two plots was compared using Biolog plates. The population from the pesticide-treated plot showed a higher rate of substrate utilization which could reflect a slightly higher inoculum of heterotrophic bacteria, but could also indicate greater metabolic diversity in the population.

KeywordsBiotechnology & Applied Microbiology; Microbiology
Year of Publication1998
JournalJournal of Applied Microbiology
Journal citation84 (4), pp. 551-558
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2672.1998.00381.x
Open accessPublished as non-open access
Funder project or code224
444
Project: 031762
PublisherWiley
ISSN1364-5072

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