Comparative analysis of pseudomonas population in oil-contaminated soils in Serbia and plant - pathogenic pseudomonas

Abstract

Pseudomonas species are remarkable for their capacity to colonize almost all terrestrial and aquatic ecological niches. This genus includes species of ecological, economic and health-related importance. Although they are globally active in aerobic decomposition and biodegradation, Pseudomonas includes species pathogenic for humans, domestic animals and cultivated plants. The aim of this study was to identify members of the Pseudomonas species from oil-polluted soil, investigate their diversity and compare it to phytopatogenic strains isolated from host-plants near marked site. Isolates were described phenotypically according to carbon assimilation, fluorescence on King B medium and susceptibility patterns to 5 different heavy metals. In addition, they were characterized genotypically using plasmid profile and fingerprints obtained with the (GTG)5 primer. We have observed high heterogeneity within the Pseudomonas strains collected from oil- contaminated soils. Phenotyping and (GTG)5 pattern showed that similarities between strains ranged from 55% to 94%, with some strains showing high level of similarity with plant-pathogens.