ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Symbiotic Interactions
Selection and characterization of salt-tolerant plant growth-promoting bacteria associated with the endosphere and rhizosphere of perennial glasswort from the Apulia Region (Italy)
Provisionally accepted
SPERANZA BARBARA1*
Angela Guerrieri1
Angela Racioppo1
Maria Rosaria Corbo1
Antonio Bevilacqua1
Milena Sinigaglia1
María Arévalo-Villena2
Beatriz García-Béjar2- 1University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy
- 2Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, Ciudad Real, Spain
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Soil salinization threatens global agricultural productivity, making halotolerant plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) crucial for sustainable farming in marginal areas. This study isolated and characterized PGPB from perennial glasswort (Arthrocaulon macrostachyum) collected at two sites in Margherita di Savoia, Apulia (Italy), during spring 2023. From rhizosphere and endosphere samples, 110 bacterial isolates (100 rhizobacteria, 10 endophytes) were obtained and characterized. Functional screening revealed: 18 isolates (16%) capable of phosphate solubilization, 25 isolates (23%) for silicon solubilization, 20 isolates (18%) producing indole acetic acid, 34 isolates (31%) producing siderophores, and 50 isolates (45%) demonstrating salt tolerance above 10% NaCl, with 28 isolates (25%) tolerating concentrations up to 17.5%. Using RAPD-PCR differentiation and Principal Component Analysis of PGPB traits, three promising halotolerant candidates were selected: Pseudomonas sp. (105S), Bacillus safensis (80S), and Peribacillus frigotolerans (114S), each exhibiting complementary plant growth-promoting characteristics. These isolates represent valuable candidates for future field validation as biofertilizers in salt-affected agricultural systems.
Keywords: endosphere, Halophytes, Marginal areas, plant growth promoting bacteria, rhizosphere
Received: 03 Oct 2025; Accepted: 09 Feb 2026.
Copyright: © 2026 BARBARA, Guerrieri, Racioppo, Corbo, Bevilacqua, Sinigaglia, Arévalo-Villena and García-Béjar. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: SPERANZA BARBARA
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