Enhancing soybean adaptive potential and productivity with endophyte-rhizobial inoculation

Liudmyla Tytova, Olena Dubynska, Nadiia Shevchuk, Galyna Iutynska
Abstract

The research aim was to investigate the effect of pre-sowing complex inoculation with endophytic and nodule bacteria on the rhizosphere microbiocenosis, soil macronutrient content, adaptive potential and productivity of soybean under the influence of stressful weather and climatic factors. A split-plots design was used to conduct a two-factor field experiment with soybean varieties of different maturity groups: the ultra-early maturing ‘Diona’ and the medium-early maturing ‘Sviatohor’. Microbiological methods were used to obtain inoculants based on nodule and endophytic bacteria (Bradyrhizobium japonicum as part of the complex bioformulation RyzobinK) and their mixtures with endophytic bacteria (Bacillus velezensis IMV B-8134, B-8135, Pseudomonas sp. 6), as well as to determine the abundance of microorganisms from various ecological-functional groups by inoculating soil suspensions onto selective agar media. Agrochemical methods were used to determine soil macronutrients, and statistical methods were applied for data analysis. The stimulatory and stress-protective effects of co-inoculation of seeds with nodule and endophytic bacteria on microbial communities in the rhizosphere soil, as well as on the development and yield of various soybean varieties on irrigated lands in southern Ukraine, have been demonstrated. An increase in the number of microorganisms belonging to the main ecological- functional groups and in the content of available forms of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in the rhizosphere soil was established. The most effective treatment in terms of synergistic action on soybean was found to be the treatment of seeds with RyzobinK in combination with Bacillus velezensis IMB B-8134. The average yield for the ‘Diona’ variety was 2.69 t/ha and for the ‘Sviatohor’ variety – 2.95 t/ha, which exceeded the control values by 38-40%. Practical value lies in effective pre-sowing endophyte-rhizobial co-inoculation of soybean seeds, improving productivity and stability of agrophytocenoses under climate change

Keywords

Glycine max (L.) Merr.; symbiotic bacteria; stressful climate factors; irrigation; rhizosphere microbiota; macronutrients; effectiveness

Suggested citation
Tytova, L., Dubynska, O., Shevchuk, N., & Iutynska, G. (2026). Enhancing soybean adaptive potential and productivity with endophyte-rhizobial inoculation. Biological Systems: Theory and Innovation, 17(2), 92-105. https://doi.org/10.31548/biologiya/2.2026.92
References
  1. Convention on Biological Diversity. (1992, May). Retrieved from https://www.cbd.int/doc/legal/cbd-en.pdf.
  2. Dragone, N.B., Hoffert, M., Strickland, M.S., & Fierer, N. (2024). Taxonomic and genomic attributes of oligotrophic soil bacteria. ISME Communications, 4(1), article number ycae081. doi: 10.1093/ismeco/ycae081.
  3. Iutynska, H., Goloborodko, S., Tytova, L., & Dubynska, O. (2022). Effectiveness of endophytic-rhizobial seed inoculation of Glycine max (L.) Merr. cultivated in irrigated soil. Journal of Central European Agriculture, 23(1), 40-53. doi: 10.5513/JCEA01/23.1.3397.
  4. Jezierska-Tys, S., Wesołowska, S., Gałązka, A., Joniec, J., Bednarz, J., & Cierpiała, R. (2020). Biological activity and functional diversity in soil in different cultivation systems. International Journal of Environmental Science and Technology, 17, 4189-4204. doi: 10.1007/s13762-020-02762-5.
  5. Leggett, M., Diaz‐Zorita, M., Koivunen, M., Bowman, R., Pesek, R., Stevenson, C., & Leister, T. (2017). Soybean response to inoculation with Bradyrhizobium japonicum in the United States and Argentina. Agronomy Journal, 109(3), 1031-1038. doi: 10.2134/agronj2016.04.0214.
  6. Malynovska, I.M. (2021). The determination of specific phosphatmobilizing activity of soil microorganisms. Agriculture and Plant Sciences: Theory and Practice, 1, 43-47. doi: 10.54651/agri.2021.01.06.
  7. Marquez, I.S., Griesbaum, K., Clark, L.V., Ainsworth, E.A., Christian, N., & Heath, K.D. (2025). Dominant foliar endophytes influence soybean yield and transcriptome. FEMS Microbiology Ecology, 101(6), article number fiaf053. doi: 10.1093/femsec/fiaf053.
  8. Maslovska, O., Komplikevych, S., Zinchuk, D., Hnatush, A., Zaritska, Y., Telehuz, O., & Hnatush, S. (2025). Bacteriome of the soil affected by hostilities as a source of isolation of plant growth-promoting metal-resistant bacteria. Annals of Microbiology, 75(1), article number 19. doi: 10.1186/s13213-025-01807-9.
  9. Mayhood, P., & Mirza, B.S. (2021). Soybean root nodule and rhizosphere microbiome: Distribution of rhizobial and nonrhizobial endophytes. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 87(10), article number e02884-20. doi: 10.1128/AEM.02884-20.
  10. Romanchuk, I.F. (2020). Method for determining soil moisture using remote sensing data. (Doctoral dissertation, Institute of Geological Sciences, Kyiv, Ukraine).
  11. Shangguan, L. (2023). Impact of climate change on agriculture and its countermeasures. Geographical Research Bulletin, 2, 73-74. doi: 10.50908/grb.2.0_73.
  12. Shevchuk, N., Tytova, L., Iutynska, G., Sergiienko, V., & Katrii, V. (2025). Influence of rhizobia and endophytic bacteria on adaptation and productivity of Glycine max (L.) Merr. under hyperthermia and drought conditions. Microbiological Journal, 87(5), 12-24. doi: 10.15407.
  13. Szpunar-Krok, E., Bobrecka-Jamro, D., Pikuła, W., & Jańczak-Pieniążek, M. (2023). Effect of nitrogen fertilization and inoculation with Bradyrhizobium japonicum on nodulation and yielding of soybean. Agronomy, 13(5), article number 1341. doi: 10.3390/agronomy13051341.
  14. Tariq, H., Viau, C., Subramanian, S., Geitmann, A., & Smith, D.L. (2025). Exo-metabolome profiling of soybean endophytes: A road map of antagonism against Fusarium oxysporum. MSystems, 10(10), article number e00927-25. doi: 10.1128/msystems.00927-25.
  15. Thenveettil, N., Bheemanahalli, R., Kharel, T.P., Reddy, K.N., Gao, W., & Reddy, K.R. (2025). Drought and high nighttime temperature impact on soybean seed yield and quality under ambient and elevated CO₂ environments. Scientific Reports, 15, article number 36679. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-20392-0.
  16. Tu, T.C., Lin, S.H., & Shen, F.T. (2021). Enhancing symbiotic nitrogen fixation and soybean growth through co-inoculation with Bradyrhizobium and Pseudomonas isolates. Sustainability, 13(20), article number 11539. doi: 10.3390/su132011539.
  17. Ushkarenko, V.O., Chaban, V.O., Shepel, A.V., & Kokovikhin, S.V. (2019). Conditional consumption of nutrients by clary sage plants under cultivation in the conditions of the Southern Steppe of Ukraine under drip irrigation. Irrigated Agriculture. Collection of Scientific Papers, 71, 176-179.
  18. Xia, C., Huang, Z., Lu, B., Geng, Z., Wang, S., & Xu, C. (2026). Physiological and molecular response of soybean to combined drought and heat stresses during flowering. BMC Plant Biology, 26, article number 319. doi: 10.1186/s12870-025-08081-6.
  19. Xing, P., Zhao, Y., Guan, D., Li, L., Zhao, B., Ma, M., Jiang, X., Tian, C., Cao, F., & Li, J. (2022). Effects of Bradyrhizobium co-inoculated with Bacillus and Paenibacillus on the structure and functional genes of soybean Rhizobacteria community. Genes, 13(11), article number 1922. doi: 10.3390/genes13111922.
  20. Yanagi, M. (2024). Climate change impacts on wheat production: Reviewing challenges and adaptation strategies. Advances in Resources Research, 4(1), 89-107. doi: 10.50908/arr.4.1_89.
  21. Zeffa, D.M., Fantin, L.H., Koltun, A., de Oliveira, A.L., Nunes, M.P., Canteri, M.G., & Gonçalves, L.S. (2020). Effects of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria on co-inoculation with Bradyrhizobium in soybean crop: A meta-analysis of studies from 1987 to 2018. PeerJ, 8, article number e7905. doi: 10.7717/peerj.7905.
  22. Zhakypbek, Y., Kossalbayev, B.D., Tursbekov, S., Tursbekova, G., Berdaliyeva, Z., & Belkozhayev, A.M. (2026). Application of beneficial bacteria to enhance plant drought resilience. Plants, 15(5), article number 753. doi: 10.3390/plants15050753.
  23. Zhu, W., Li, J., & Xie, T. (2024). Impact of climate change on soybean production: Research progress and response strategies. Advances in Resources Research, 4(3), 474-496. doi: 10.50908/arr.4.3_474.
  24. Zulfarina, Z., Rusmana, I., Mubarik, N.R., & Santosa, D.A. (2017). The abundance of nitrogen fixing, nitrifying, denitrifying and ammonifying bacteria in the soil of tropical rainforests and oil palm plantations in Jambi. Makara Journal of Science, 21(4), 181-187. doi: 10.7454/mss.v21i4.8841.