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Sphagnum mosses serve as a unique habitat for microorganisms, which play an important role both for the host plants and the peatland ecosystems. The aim of the present study was to isolate endophytic bacteria from the tissues of Sphagnum mosses and to screen them for strains promising for further application in agricultural microbiology. About 50 samples of Sphagnum fallax (H. Klinggr.) H. Klinggr. and Sphagnum magellanicum Brid. were collected in the Austrian Alps and the Lenindgrad Region of Russia in 2009–2010. Endophytic bacteria were detected inside the moss plants using fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) followed by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM). Altogether, 283 isolates were obtained by cultivation on the nutrient media. Examination of the isolates for the antagonistic activity revealed that more than 50% of them could suppress the growth of phytopathogenic and toxigenic fungi. More than 30% of isolates showed some antagonistic activity against microbial phytopathogens. The isolated strains could colonize crops and promote their growth. Molecular-genetic identification coupled with physiological/biochemical characterization showed that the dominant endophytic groups belonged to the genera Burkholderia, Pseudomonas, Flavobacterium, Serratia and Collimonas. The isolated endophytes were shown to be promising objects for the development of effective growth-promoting and protective microbiological preparations to be used in agriculture.

In this review data on the possibility of using endophytic bacteria for improving crop yields and quality are discussed.

732 ACKNOWLEGMENTS should read as follows: This work (sections “Biodiversity of endophytic bacteria, artificial inoculation of plants with endophytic bacteria and colonization of plant endosphere, influence of bacterial endophytes on plant growth and development, the ability of endophytic bacteria to control the development of plant diseases (“biocontrol activity”), endophytic bacteria – producers of “secondary metabo lites”) was supported by the Russian Science Foundation (project no. 14 16 00146), section “Prospects for the use of endophytic bacteria in microbial preparations that improve plant growth” with the financial support of the leading universities of the Russian Federation (grant 074 U01)”. ERRATA

In this review data on the possibility of using endophytic bacteria for improving crop yields and quality are discussed.