Endophytic Flavobacterium promotes root hair development and enhances drought tolerance via an ERF–CEP5 hormonal regulatory module

Root hairs (RHs) are cellular outgrowths of plant root epidermal cells that are important for water uptake, nutrient acquisition and rhizosphere dynamics. Key genes controlling RH development have been identified, but the regulatory mechanisms of RH growth during drought stress remain largely elusive. Here we show that the bacterial root endophyte Flavobacterium sp. 98 (Flavo98) modulates root system architecture with a pronounced promotion of RH formation and cell elongation that is maintained under low-water conditions. We also show that Flavo98 improves plant performance under drought in diverse plant species, including Arabidopsis and wheat, and mitigates drought-associated seed yield loss. Using cellular, molecular and genetic analyses in Arabidopsis, we identified root stele-expressed ERF transcription factors, ERF115 and ERF114, as key mediators of Flavo98-induced RH development and plant drought responses. We show that both ERFs operate, in part, by inducing the expression of the small signalling peptide C-TERMINALLY ENCODED PEPTIDE 5 (CEP5). In addition, we present evidence for enhanced ethylene biosynthesis and signalling in Flavo98-induced ERF115 and ERF114 expression, revealing a new pathway that integrates ethylene signalling into RH regulation under drought. Together, our findings uncover a pathway that regulates RH growth as part of a broader, microorganism-dependent root system architecture plasticity under low-water conditions. This study highlights the potential of uncovering plant-microorganism mechanisms to strengthen crop resilience in a changing climate.

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Journal
Nature Plants
Published
2026-08-14
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41477-026-02350-4
Primary Topic
Plant-Microbe Interactions and Immunity
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
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article

Endophytic Flavobacterium promotes root hair development and enhances drought tolerance via an ERF–CEP5 hormonal regulatory module

José M. Estevez, Jingke Kang, Viola Willemsen, Bernd Mueller‐Roeber et al.
Nature Plants
Plant-Microbe Interactions and Immunity
article

Endophytic Flavobacterium promotes root hair development and enhances drought tolerance via an ERF–CEP5 hormonal regulatory module

José M. Estevez, Jingke Kang, Viola Willemsen, Bernd Mueller‐Roeber, Sofia Stiegert, Arezoo Rahimi, Omid Karami, Marcel Wiermer, Lieven De Veylder, Aixia Huang, Víctor J. Carrión, Victoria Berdion Gabarain, Jefri Heyman, Hugo A. Pantigoso, Mitja N. P. Remus‐Emsermann, Jos M. Raaijmakers, Salma Balazadeh, Tingting Zhu, Nathaniel I. Martin, Ive De Smet, Guillermo Guerrero-Egido, Guodong Wang, Vladyslav Lysenko, Paramjit S. Chopra, Connor Philippo, Thijs Stegmann
article en

Abstract

Root hairs (RHs) are cellular outgrowths of plant root epidermal cells that are important for water uptake, nutrient acquisition and rhizosphere dynamics. Key genes controlling RH development have been identified, but the regulatory mechanisms of RH growth during drought stress remain largely elusive. Here we show that the bacterial root endophyte Flavobacterium sp. 98 (Flavo98) modulates root system architecture with a pronounced promotion of RH formation and cell elongation that is maintained under low-water conditions. We also show that Flavo98 improves plant performance under drought in diverse plant species, including Arabidopsis and wheat, and mitigates drought-associated seed yield loss. Using cellular, molecular and genetic analyses in Arabidopsis, we identified root stele-expressed ERF transcription factors, ERF115 and ERF114, as key mediators of Flavo98-induced RH development and plant drought responses. We show that both ERFs operate, in part, by inducing the expression of the small signalling peptide C-TERMINALLY ENCODED PEPTIDE 5 (CEP5). In addition, we present evidence for enhanced ethylene biosynthesis and signalling in Flavo98-induced ERF115 and ERF114 expression, revealing a new pathway that integrates ethylene signalling into RH regulation under drought. Together, our findings uncover a pathway that regulates RH growth as part of a broader, microorganism-dependent root system architecture plasticity under low-water conditions. This study highlights the potential of uncovering plant-microorganism mechanisms to strengthen crop resilience in a changing climate.

Nature Plants
Leiden University (NL), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (AR), University of Potsdam (DE), University of Applied Sciences Leiden (NL), Fundación Instituto Leloir (AR), Millennium Science Initiative (CL), Ghent University (BE), VIB-UGent Center for Plant Systems Biology (BE), Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NL), Instituto de Hortofruticultura Subtropical y Mediterránea "La Mayora" (ES), Millennium Institute for Integrative Biology (CL), University of Göttingen (DE), Freie Universität Berlin (DE), Universidad de Málaga (ES), Shaanxi Normal University (CN), Wageningen University & Research (NL)
European Commission, Universiteit Leiden, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Universiteit Utrecht, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas, Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Universiteit Gent, Jyväskylän Yliopisto, Vlaamse regering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Agencia Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo, Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica, Fondo Nacional de Desarrollo Científico y Tecnológico
Climate action
Openalex Percentile: Top 11%
Plant-Microbe Interactions and Immunity
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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