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Pink-Pigmented Facultative methylotrophs

Sources:

"Probiotics for Plants? What the PPFMs told us and some ideas about how to use them."

Pink-pigmented facultative methylotrophs received part of their name due to their reddish-pink color. This color is observed due to carotenoids within the cell.

Research suggests that germinating seeds harbor species of bacteria that that help the seed germinate. Drying seeds for an extended period of time, riding most viable bacteria, causes significantly lower rates of germination. It was determined that PPFMs were the main source of assistance, as removal of PPFMs with PPFM-specific phages reduced germinability and development of seeds. Bacterization, or the process of exposing seeds to a bacterial population, increased the viability of seeds. Exposure to PPFM prior to germination may be an effective way of improving the shelf-life of seeds.

One potential benefit of symbiotic PPFM relationships with plants is the production of cytokines by PPFMs. Plants with more growth showed an increased concentration in cytokine production, but credit has yet to be given to the bacteria. It has been established that PPFM symbionts produced growth factors such as ethylene, auxins, and gibberellic acid. This relationship is a model for plant-microbe interactions, also known as a symbiotic relationship. PPFMs are known for their ability to utilize methanol as a sole energy source. This is the main reason that this relationship evolved. It has been reported that trees and crop species emit large amounts of the alcohol methanol ((CH30H) from their stomata. Interestingly, younger trees emit even more ethanol. As their name suggests, PPFM bacteria can undergo methylotrophy, a process in which the bacteria oxidize methanol with the help of methanol dehydrogenase (MDH) and pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ)-linked protein. It is hypothesized that bacteria are attracted to the emitted methanol. In certain environments there are limited concentrations of elements such as carbon and phosphate in a usable form. Research suggests that PPFMs could breakdown unusable forms of carbon, etc into usbale forms for plants. This process bridges the gap for plants and allows them to grow in different niches. Without this process, plants would not have access to enough phosphate or carbon to grow efficiently. Studies also indicate that PPFM can break down additional carbon sources and utilize phosphate efficiently, potential providing additional assistance to plants. Overall, research in in this field suggests that overall a plant's growth, survival, and reproductive success are significantly better when grown symbiotically with PPFMs. So far this relationship is only beneficial to haploid gametophytes, such as liverworts and mosses.

"Plant colonization by pink-pigmented facultative methylotrophic bacteria (PPFMs)"

"Evaluation of pink-pigmented facultative methylotrophic bacteria for phosphate solubilization"

"Supply of phosphates through biological means can be a viable alternative as microorganisms available in different environmental niches have been reported to participate in phosphate solubilization to make it available to growing plants." "PPFMs, belonging to the genus Methylobacterium, are well-studied examples of facultative methylotrophs that follows the serine pathway of methylotrophy to oxidize the single as well as a wide range of multicarbon compounds"