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Credit: Martin Vötsch and Jürgen Berger
A study of root-associated microbes in 27 inbred maize lines in three fields sampled 5 years apart shows that variation in 143 species-level taxa was significantly associated with the plant's genotype even after accounting for variation in location, plant age, and response to weather, suggesting that, similar to genetic traits, heritable microbial taxa that prove beneficial to plants could be selected in plant breeding.
Article #18-00918: "Large-scale replicated field study of maize rhizosphere identifies heritable microbes," by William Walters et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Ruth E. Ley, Max Planck Institute, Tübingen, GERMANY; tel: +49 7071 601450; e-mail: <ruth.ley@tuebingen.mpg.de>
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Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences