Can LCO and mycorrhiza mitigate the impact of water deficit on pea growth in co-inoculations with rhizobium? A preliminary assessment

National audience; Water stress is a major factor limiting production of legumes in Europe, but could be mitigated by improving interactions between plant roots and soil microbial communities, including symbiotic rhizobia and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. These two microbes produce lipochitooligosaccharide (LCO) signals, which stimulate symbiotic interactions and lateral root formation [1, 2]. While N2-fixation by rhizobia fulfills the plants N requirement [3], mycorrhizal fungi can improve mineral nutrition (P, N, S, K, Zn, Cu…) and water uptake [4- 5]. We have investigated in pea plants grown in interaction with a rhizobium strain, to what extent the negative impact of water deficit could…