Abstract
Through their decomposing activities, earthworms produce rich organic fertilizers called vermicomposts containing mineral nutrients and anecdotal evidence of biologically active phytohormones. Aqueous extracts of vermicomposts, namely vermicompost tea (VT), have positive effects on plant growth. It has been postulated that trace amounts of phytohormones in vermicomposts or its VT are beneficial for plant growth and development. We therefore screened for the different classes of phytohormones (auxins, cytokinins, abscisic acid, and gibberellin) in VT using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) after solid-phase extraction. VT was produced by earthworms being fed with a mixture of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) and chicken manure at a ratio of 4:1 (w/w). This investigation is the first mass spectrometric evidence for the presence of cytokinins in VT: namely trans-Zeatin (tZ), N6-Isopentenyladenine (iP) and N6-Isopentenyladenosine (iPR), which were present at 0.06, 3.33, and 0.02 nmol L–1, respectively. The successful detection and quantitation of cytokinins in VT provided direct evidence to explain the growth efficacy of applying VT in order to enhance plant growth and development. We postulated that they were microbially synthesized due to the abundance of microbial communities in the vermicompost.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Arancon NQ, Edwards CA, Lee S, Byrne R (2006) Effects of humic acids from vermicomposts on plant growth. Eur J Soil Biol 42:S65–S69
Arancon NQ, Edwards CA, Webster KA, Buckerfield JC (2010) The potential of vermicomposts as plant growth media for greenhouse crop production. In: Edwards CA, Arancon NQ, Sherman R (eds) Vermiculture technology: earthworms, organic wastes, and environmental management. CRC, Boca Raton, pp 103–128
Barret M, Morrissey JP, O’Gara F (2011) Functional genomics analysis of plant growth-promoting rhizobacterial traits involved in rhizosphere competence. Biol Fertil Soils 47:729–743
Bennici A, Cionini PG (1979) Cytokinins and in vitro development of Phaseolus coccineus embryos. Planta 147:27–29
Canellas LP, Olivares FL, Okorokova-Façanha AL, Façanha AR (2002) Humic acids isolated from earthworm compost enhance root elongation, lateral root emergence, and plasma membrane H+-ATPase activity in maize roots. Plant Physiol 130:1951–1957
Cesco S, Mimmo T, Tonon G, Tomasi N, Pinton R, Terzano R, Neumann G, Weisskopf L, Renella G, Landi L, Nannipieri P (2012) Plant-borne flavonoids released into the rhizosphere: impact on soil bio-activities related to plant nutrition. Biol Fertil Soils 48:123–149
Doube BM, Williams PML, Willmott PJ (1997) The influence of two species of earthworm (Aporrectodea trapezoides and Aporrectoedea rosea) on the growth of wheat, barley and faba beans in three soil types in the greenhouse. Soil Biol Biochem 29:503–509
Edwards CA, Askar AM, Vasko-Bennett MA, Arancon NQ (2010) Use of aqueous extracts from vermicomposts or teas in suppression of plant pathogens. In: Edwards CA, Arancon NQ, Sherman R (eds) Vermiculture technology: earthworms, organic wastes, and environmental management. CRC, Boca Raton, pp 183–207
Ge LY, Yong JWH, Tan SN, Yang XH, Ong ES (2004) Analysis of some cytokinins in coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) water by micellar electrokinetic capillary chromatography after solid-phase extraction. J Chromatogr, A 1048:119–126
Gilot C (1997) Effects of a tropical geophageous earthworm, M. anomala (Megascolecidae), on soil characteristics and production of a yam crop in Ivory Coast. Soil Biol Biochem 29:353–359
Idowu AB, Edema MO, Adeyi AO (2006) Distribution of bacteria and fungi in the earthworm Libyodrillus violaceous (Annelida: Oligochaeta), a native earthworm from Nigeria. Rev Biol Trop 54:49–58
Jameson PE, Morris RO (1989) Zeatin-like cytokinins in yeast: detection by immunological methods. J Plant Physiol 135:385–390
Karsten GR, Drake HL (1995) Comparative assessment of the aerobic and anaerobic microfloras of earthworm guts and forest soils. Appl Environ Microbiol 61:1039–1044
Kraigher H, Grayling A, Wang TL, Hanke DE (1991) Cytokinin production by two ectomycorrhizal fungi in liquid culture. Phytochem 30:2249–2254
Ma Z, Ge LY, Lee ASY, Yong JWH, Tan SN, Ong ES (2008) Simultaneous analysis of different classes of phytohormones in coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) water using high-performance liquid chromatography and liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry after solid-phase extraction. Anal Chim Acta 610:274–281
Palni LMS, Palmer MV, Letham DS (1984) The stability and biological activity of cytokinin metabolites in soybean callus tissue. Planta 160:242–249
Sakakibara H (2006) Cytokinins: activity, biosynthesis, and translocation. Annu Rev Plant Biol 57:431–449
Stirk WA, van Staden J (2010) Flow of cytokinins through the environment. Plant Growth Regul 62:101–116
Taylor NJ, Stirk WA, van Staden J (2003) The elusive cytokinin biosynthetic pathway. S Afr J Bot 69:269–281
Timmusk S, Nicander B, Granhall U, Tillberg E (1999) Cytokinin production by Paenibacillus polymyxa. Soil Biol Biochem 31:1847–1852
Tomati U, Grappelli A, Galli E (1988) The hormone-like effect of earthworm casts on plant growth. Biol Fertil Soils 5:288–294
Acknowledgments
The authors would like to acknowledge the financial support from the Singapore University of Technology and Design and Zhejiang University (ZJURP1100101). We also thank Professor D. Stuart Letham (Australian National University) for his insightful discussions and continued interests in searching for novel sources of cytokinins.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Zhang, H., Tan, S.N., Wong, W.S. et al. Mass spectrometric evidence for the occurrence of plant growth promoting cytokinins in vermicompost tea. Biol Fertil Soils 50, 401–403 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-013-0846-y
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00374-013-0846-y