Impact of maize mucilage on atrazine mineralization and atzC abundance

Soil was amended with maize mucilage, a major rhizodeposit, to study its role on the number of culturable soil micro-organisms, the structure of the bacterial community, atrazine mineralization and atzC abundance. The maximal percentage of atrazine mineralization was lower for mucilage-amended than for water-amended soil. Total culturable soil bacteria and 16S rDNA copy number, measured by RT-PCR, presented similar values and were not significantly (P < 0.05) different among treatments. Mucilage applied at a rate of 70 microg C g(-1) dry soil day(-1) over two weeks did not modify the abundance of the total soil microflora. Global structure of soil bacterial communities revealed by RISA analysis was not modified by maize mucilage amendment. Abundance of atzC sequence was only augmented by mucilage addition at the beginning of the experiment. However, this increase was not sustainable in time, as atzC copy number increased in water-amended soil which, in turn, corresponded with the higher percentage of atrazine mineralization observed in this soil. Maize mucilage amendment alone contributed only to minor changes in the atrazine-degrading community in the studied soil.