Endophytic bacteria enhance macrophyte resilience but reduce microbial network stability under eutrophication

Lake eutrophication poses a serious threat to the biodiversity and ecosystem functions of submerged macrophytes. As symbiotic microorganisms of submerged macrophyte, endophytic bacteria can enhance plant’s stress resistance and promote its growth. However, whether they can help submerged macrophytes...

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Main Authors: Beibei Hao, Bin He, Siyi Zhang, Haoping Wu
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-08-01
Series:Ecological Indicators
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1470160X25007344
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author Beibei Hao
Bin He
Siyi Zhang
Haoping Wu
author_facet Beibei Hao
Bin He
Siyi Zhang
Haoping Wu
author_sort Beibei Hao
collection DOAJ
description Lake eutrophication poses a serious threat to the biodiversity and ecosystem functions of submerged macrophytes. As symbiotic microorganisms of submerged macrophyte, endophytic bacteria can enhance plant’s stress resistance and promote its growth. However, whether they can help submerged macrophytes cope with eutrophication is not yet clear. This study investigated the interactions between submerged macrophytes and endophytic bacteria in eutrophic lakes, with a particular focus on their response mechanisms to eutrophication stress. The results show that resistant species, such as Myriophyllum spicatum, alleviate eutrophication stress by increasing proline accumulation and enhancing morphological complexity. In contrast, sensitive species like Hydrilla verticillata exhibited significant declines in key metabolic compounds. As nutrient level increases, the community of endophytic bacteria shifts from acquiring nutrients to resisting stress, and this shift is accompanied by a decrease in community network complexity and stability, which potentially reduce the long-term resilience of lake ecosystems. This study highlights the importance of submerged macrophyte-endophyte interactions in mitigating the eutrophication impacts, providing valuable insights for the restoration of degraded aquatic ecosystems.
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spelling doaj-art-7c936f5fc7384f7aaf38040b7103ce992025-08-20T03:16:07ZengElsevierEcological Indicators1470-160X2025-08-0117711380410.1016/j.ecolind.2025.113804Endophytic bacteria enhance macrophyte resilience but reduce microbial network stability under eutrophicationBeibei Hao0Bin He1Siyi Zhang2Haoping Wu3Institute of One Health Science, School of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Geography Science, State Key Laboratory for Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China; National-Regional Joint Engineering Research Center for Soil Pollution Control and Remediation in South China, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Integrated Agro-environmental Pollution Control and Management, Institute of Eco-environmental and Soil Sciences, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, ChinaInstitute of One Health Science, School of Civil & Environmental Engineering and Geography Science, State Key Laboratory for Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Ningbo University, Ningbo 315211, China; Corresponding authors.National-Regional Joint Engineering Research Center for Soil Pollution Control and Remediation in South China, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Integrated Agro-environmental Pollution Control and Management, Institute of Eco-environmental and Soil Sciences, Guangdong Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510650, ChinaEnvironmental Horticulture Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, China; Corresponding authors.Lake eutrophication poses a serious threat to the biodiversity and ecosystem functions of submerged macrophytes. As symbiotic microorganisms of submerged macrophyte, endophytic bacteria can enhance plant’s stress resistance and promote its growth. However, whether they can help submerged macrophytes cope with eutrophication is not yet clear. This study investigated the interactions between submerged macrophytes and endophytic bacteria in eutrophic lakes, with a particular focus on their response mechanisms to eutrophication stress. The results show that resistant species, such as Myriophyllum spicatum, alleviate eutrophication stress by increasing proline accumulation and enhancing morphological complexity. In contrast, sensitive species like Hydrilla verticillata exhibited significant declines in key metabolic compounds. As nutrient level increases, the community of endophytic bacteria shifts from acquiring nutrients to resisting stress, and this shift is accompanied by a decrease in community network complexity and stability, which potentially reduce the long-term resilience of lake ecosystems. This study highlights the importance of submerged macrophyte-endophyte interactions in mitigating the eutrophication impacts, providing valuable insights for the restoration of degraded aquatic ecosystems.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1470160X25007344Endophytic bacteriaPlant–endophyte interactionsEutrophication stressSubmerged macrophytesMicrobial network stability
spellingShingle Beibei Hao
Bin He
Siyi Zhang
Haoping Wu
Endophytic bacteria enhance macrophyte resilience but reduce microbial network stability under eutrophication
Ecological Indicators
Endophytic bacteria
Plant–endophyte interactions
Eutrophication stress
Submerged macrophytes
Microbial network stability
title Endophytic bacteria enhance macrophyte resilience but reduce microbial network stability under eutrophication
title_full Endophytic bacteria enhance macrophyte resilience but reduce microbial network stability under eutrophication
title_fullStr Endophytic bacteria enhance macrophyte resilience but reduce microbial network stability under eutrophication
title_full_unstemmed Endophytic bacteria enhance macrophyte resilience but reduce microbial network stability under eutrophication
title_short Endophytic bacteria enhance macrophyte resilience but reduce microbial network stability under eutrophication
title_sort endophytic bacteria enhance macrophyte resilience but reduce microbial network stability under eutrophication
topic Endophytic bacteria
Plant–endophyte interactions
Eutrophication stress
Submerged macrophytes
Microbial network stability
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1470160X25007344
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AT binhe endophyticbacteriaenhancemacrophyteresiliencebutreducemicrobialnetworkstabilityundereutrophication
AT siyizhang endophyticbacteriaenhancemacrophyteresiliencebutreducemicrobialnetworkstabilityundereutrophication
AT haopingwu endophyticbacteriaenhancemacrophyteresiliencebutreducemicrobialnetworkstabilityundereutrophication