Molecular characterization of the endophytic bacteria found in the fig crops (Ficus carica var. Brown Turkey) In Costa Rica.

Plants constitute excellent microbial habitats, where it is possible to find a considerable amount of beneficial individuals, including bacterial endophytes. Endophytes are microorganism that colonizes plant tissue without causing any evident symptom or disease, while providing a series of benefits to the plants, which range from promoting the plant growth to acting as biological control agents. The overall aim of this investigation was to molecularly characterize endophytic bacteria associated to the fig (Ficuscaricavar. Brown Turkey) crops, through the amplification of 16S ribosomal DNA. To achieve this, fig plant leaf segments were disinfected and cultured in EMB and NA culture media, for the bacteria morphological identification. Later, 16S rDNA was isolated using the UNI2 and UNI5a primers. Finally, the obtained sequences were compared to those found in the GenBank database, and a phylogenetic tree and a genetic distance matrix were developed. It was determined that the obtained isolates corresponded to Klebsiellaoxytoca, Pseudomonas sp and Pantoeasp, which had been previously reported as endophytic bacteria in other plant crops.