High-throughput method for detecting siderophore production by rhizosphere bacteria

Abstract

Siderophores, a key substance that microorganisms produce to obtain iron under iron-limited conditions, play an important role in regulating interactions between beneficial bacteria and pathogenic bacteria. A large number of bacteria were isolated from the rhizosphere, and we used the method presented here to assay the siderophore production by these rhizosphere bacteria. This method is a modified version of the universal chrome azurol S (CAS) assay that uses a 96-channel manual pipetting workstation. By combining the liquid CAS assay with the multi-channel pipette workstation, high-throughput and rapid detection of siderophore production can be achieved. In summary, this method can be used to gain a general understanding of siderophore production by rhizosphere bacteria.