Plant growth promoting signatory volatiles emitted by a drought-tolerant bacterium Bacillus altitudinis FD48 and its role in moisture stress alleviation in rice (Oryza sativa L.)

• Bacterial volatile organic compounds (bVOCs) plays key role in plant-microbe interaction and stress resilience. • Bacillus altitudinis FD48, a plant growth promoting drought tolerant bacteria exerts bVOCs induced systemic tolerance in rice plants. • GC–MS-ATD analysis of FD48 VOCs reveals 40 bioactive compounds with prominent plant growth-promoting and drought tolerance traits. • Influence of bVOCs on plants highly depends on the inoculum quantity, higher concentrations are detrimental. • Identified signatory bVOCs of FD48 that could be a potential orchestrator in mitigating moisture stress. Increasing evidence implies that bacterial volatile organic compounds (bVOCs) play a significant role in plant-microbe interaction. Plant associated bacteria produces plant growth modulating volatiles elicits induced systemic tolerance (IST) in plants against a multitude of abiotic stress. Induction of IST and plant growth promotion by signatory bVOCs of Bacillus altitudinis FD48 against drought are reported in this study. The rice seedlings exposed to bVOCs blends of FD48 showed a one-fold increase in whole plant biomass and auxin content (3 µmol g -1 FW) under induced moisture stress. The effect of bVOCs highly depends on the inoculum load. Higher inoculum quantity (100 µL) is detrimental to plant growth. bVOCs produced by FD48 profiled at different growth intervals in GC–MS-ATD revealed a total of 40 bioactive compounds both under stress (PEG 6000) and non-stressed conditions. Interestingly, potential plant growth-promoting compounds such as 1-Hexanol, 2,3-butanediol, dimethyl disulfide, benzene, butanoic acid, pentadecane, and acetic acid are more pronounced. Few compounds produced under non-stress were found to increase during stress (example, 2,3-Butanediol, and acetic acid). This study unraveled the significant biosynthetic pathways induced by FD48 bVOC blends, such as pyruvate metabolism, tryptophan metabolism, sulfur metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis, and ethanol degradation that anchors in abating moisture stress. Hence, it can be concluded that PGPB B. altitudinis FD48 produced bVOCs could be potential orchestrators of induced systemic tolerance in plants against moisture stress.