Study on Screening and Degradation Effect of Autotoxin-Degrading Bacteria in Muskmelon

The autotoxins of muskmelon are one of the most important reasons for the continuous cropping obstacle of muskmelon, of which the main components are phenolic acids. Phenolic acids can inhibit the growth and development of muskmelon plants. The purpose of this study was to screen the strains that can degrade phenolic acids in soil. Using phenolic acids as the sole carbon source, the strains were isolated and screened by the dilution plate method, which could efficiently degrade various phenolic acids. The abilities of the strains to degrade phenolic acids were measured by HPLC, and the effects of degrading phenolic acids in soil were verified by a pot experiment. After identification, strain T58 was identified as Burkholderia sp., strain T79 was identified as Burkholderia sp., strain H16 was identified as Pseudomonas sp., and strain T15 was identified as Burkholderia sp. The results showed that, after 21 days of culture, the degradation rates of ferulic acid, p-coumaric acid, vanillin and sinapic acid by strain H16, strain T79, strain T15 and strain T58 were 100%, respectively. Additionally, the degradation rates of gallic acid by the four strains were also 100%. In this study, it was found that the four strains of autotoxin-degrading bacteria had good degradation effects on various phenolic acids, which could not only alleviate the toxic effects of phenolic acids on muskmelon, but also promote the growth of muskmelon seedlings.