fmicb-10-01221 June 4, 2019 Time: 15:3 # 1 ORIGINAL RESEARCH published: 05 June 2019 doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.01221 Sphingomonas sp. Cra20 Increases Plant Growth Rate and Alters Rhizosphere Microbial Community Structure of Arabidopsis thaliana Under Drought Stress Yang Luo1, Fang Wang1, Yaolong Huang1, Meng Zhou1, Jiangli Gao1, Taozhe Yan1, Hongmei Sheng1* and Lizhe An1,2* 1 Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Cell Activities and Stress Adaptations, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China, 2 The College of Forestry, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China The rhizosphere is colonized by a mass of microbes, including bacteria capable of Edited by: promoting plant growth that carry out complex interactions. Here, by using a sterile Camille Eichelberger Granada, experimental system, we demonstrate that Sphingomonas sp. Cra20 promotes the University of Taquari Valley, Brazil growth of Arabidopsis thaliana by driving developmental plasticity in the roots, thus Reviewed by: Muhammad Saleem, stimulating the growth of lateral roots and root hairs. By investigating the growth Alabama State University, dynamics of A. thaliana in soil with different water-content, we demonstrate that Cra20 United States Andrew Gloss, increases the growth rate of plants, but does not change the time of reproductive The University of Chicago, transition under well-water condition. The results further show that the application of United States Cra20 changes the rhizosphere indigenous bacterial community, which may be due *Correspondence: to the change in root structure. Our findings provide new insights into the complex Hongmei Sheng
[email protected] mechanisms of plant and bacterial interactions. The ability to promote the growth of Lizhe An plants under water-deficit can contribute to the development of sustainable agriculture.