Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Oct 10;10(10):402.
doi: 10.3390/metabo10100402.

NMR-Based Metabolomic Analysis and Microbial Composition of Soil Supporting Burkea africana Growth

Lufuno Ethel Nemadodzi  1   2 , Jacques Vervoort  3 , Gerhard Prinsloo  1
Affiliations

NMR-Based Metabolomic Analysis and Microbial Composition of Soil Supporting Burkea africana Growth

Lufuno Ethel Nemadodzi et al. Metabolites. .

Abstract

Burkea africana is a leguminous tree used for medicinal purposes, growing in clusters, on soils impoverished from most nutrients. The study aimed to determine the factors responsible for successful reproduction and establishment of the B. africana trees in nature, as all efforts for commercial production has been proven unsuccessful. An investigation was carried out to determine the metabolomic profile, chemical composition, and microbial composition of the soils where B. africana grows (Burkea soil) versus the soil where it does not grow (non-Burkea soil). 1H-NMR metabolomic analysis showed different metabolites in the respective soils. Trehalose and betaine, as well as a choline-like and carnitine-like compound, were found to be in higher concentration in Burkea soils, whereas, acetate, lactate, and formate were concentrated in non-Burkea soils. Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry analysis revealed the presence of numerous amino acids such as aspartic acid and glutamine to be higher in Burkea soils. Since it was previously suggested that the soil microbial diversity is the major driver for establishment and survival of seedlings in nature, Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) was extracted and a BLAST analysis conducted for species identification. Penicillium species was found to be highly prevalent and discriminant between the two soils, associated with the Burkea soils. No differences in the bacterial composition of Burkea and non-Burkea soils were observed. The variances in fungal composition suggests that species supremacy play a role in development of B. africana trees and is responsible for creating a supporting environment for natural establishment and survival of seedlings.

Keywords: Burkea africana; Penicillium sp; growth promoting metabolites (GPM); nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR); plant growth; soil metabolomics; soil microbial community.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest. The funders had no role in the design of the study; in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data; in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
OPLS-DA used as a statistical model to show separation between Burkea (blue) versus non-Burkea (green) top and sub soils (R2X = 0.938 and R2Y = 0.593).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Contribution plot representing the differences between Burkea versus non-Burkea soils showing regions with positive correlation with Burkea soils for choline-like (1) (3.1 ppm), carnitine-like (1) (3.1 ppm), betaine (2) (3.3 and 3.9 ppm) and trehalose (3) (3.6, 3.8, 3.9 and 5.2 ppm) compounds and negative association for acetate (4) (1.9 ppm), lactate (5) (4.1 ppm) and formate (6) (8.4 ppm).
Figure 3
Figure 3
Representation of fungal species in Burkea soils.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Representation of fungal species in non-Burkea soils.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Marschner H. Mineral Nutrition of Higher Plants. Academic Press; San Diego, CA, USA: 1995.
    1. Witkowski E.T.F., Lamont B.B. Disproportionate allocation of mineral nutrients and carbon between vegetative and reproductive structures in Banksia hookeriana. Oecologia. 1996;105:38–42. doi: 10.1007/BF00328789. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Wilson B.G., Witkowski E.T.F. Seed banks, bark thickness and change in age and size structure (1978–1999) of the African savannah tree, Burkea africana. Plant Ecol. 2003;167:151–162. doi: 10.1023/A:1023999806577. - DOI
    1. Malterud K.E. Ethnopharmacology, Chemistry and Biological Properties of Four Malian Medicinal Plants. Plants. 2017;6:11. doi: 10.3390/plants6010011. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Mathisen E., Diallo D., Malterud K.E. Antioxidants from the bark of Burkea africana, an African medicinal plant. Phytother. Res. 2002;16:148–153. doi: 10.1002/ptr.936. - DOI - PubMed