Publication! Aquaponics as Microbiology Research Opportunity.

If the fish gut and plant root microbiomes are as similar as Hacquard and colleagues suggested1 in 2015, why do aquaponic system plants have nutrient deficiencies? We at UW-Milwaukee’s School of Freshwater Sciences, along with colleagues from Johns Hopkins and Wageningen University, offered our perspective on the underutilization of microorganisms in aquaponic systems. Aquaponic systems utilizing plant growth promoting microorganisms may better meet the USDA criteria for organic produce classification while increasing system reproducibility. Our recently published perspective in Frontiers in Microbiology explores aquaponic system iron deficiency in detail. The current practice of supplementing plant iron with industrial chelates is contrasted with within system iron chelation via microorganisms’ siderophore production.

The full article is published in Frontiers in Microbiology: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2018.00008/full

1. See Hacquard article at (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1931312815001675)