Analysis of rhizobacteria involved in arsenic cycle associated with a spontaneous grass plant growing on an arsenic polluted soil

Whereas microbial communities in arsenic-polluted soils have been studied, little is known about the composition of rhizospheric bacteria associate with plants growing in such soils. The primary goal of this study was to investigate which microorganisms inhabit the rhizosphere of a spontaneous grass plant (thistle) [Cirsium arvense (L.)], growing on a soil with a long history of arsenic pollution and to analyse the diversity of Asresistant bacteria potentially involved in aerobic arsenic transformation, with regard of their plant growth promoting traits (PGP).