Cu-Ag Nanoparticles Positively Modulating the Endophytic Bacterial Community in Tomato Roots Affected by Bacterial Wilt

Weimin Ning¹Xuefeng Bao²Lei Jiang¹Mei Yang Yang¹Tianhao Lei¹Mao-Yan Liu^1*Yong Liu³

• ¹College of Agriculture, Xichang College, Xichang, Sichuan, China
• ²Xichang College, Xichang, Sichuan, China
• ³Hunan Plant Protection Institute, Hunan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Changsha, Hunan Province, China

Tomato bacterial wilt (TBW) is a destructive soil-borne bacterial infection caused by Ralstonia solanacearum. Various nanoparticles have been employed as antibacterial agents to manage TBW via soil application. However, research on the effects of nanoparticles on plant endophytes remains limited. Here, an analysis of the endophytic bacterial community was performed on healthy and infected tomatoes that were treated with Cu-Ag nanoparticles and thiodiazole-copper. The relative abundance levels of beneficial bacteria, including Acidobacteriota, Firmicutes, Actinobacteriota, and Myxococcota, were higher in infected tomato roots treated with Cu-Ag nanoparticles compared with thiodiazole-copper. Functional predictions show that Cu-Ag nanoparticles may affect pyruvate metabolism, oxidative phosphorylation, purine metabolism, carbon metabolism, secondary metabolite production, and the metabolic pathways associated with microbial communities. These results could reveal the mechanism by which nanoparticles influence the endophytic microbiomes of plant roots and direct the rational application of nanoparticles in sustainable agriculture.