O presente estudo teve por objetivo analisar os efeitos da inoculação de Acinetobacter sp. ICB117 no desenvolvimento da cana-de-açúcar variedade SP791011. As plantas foram cultivadas a partir de toletes com uma gema e fornecidas pelo Centro de Tecnologia Canavieira. Aos 30 dias de idade, foram submetidas aos seguintes tratamentos: controle (C) sem inoculação e solução de Hoagland sem nitrogênio; nitrato (N) sem inoculação e solução de Hoagland com nitrato (15 mM); bactéria (B) inoculação bacteriana e solução de Hoagland sem nitrogênio; bactéria + nitrato (BN) inoculação bacteriana e solução de Hoagland com nitrato (15 mM). Antes da realização da inoculação, foi inserido em ICB117 um plasmídio que contém um gene de expressão para o GFP. O material vegetal foi coletado mensalmente (2 coletas), sendo os seguintes parâmetros analisados: altura, nº de folhas, massa seca, composição de aminoácidos na seiva xilemática, razão C/N das raízes e folhas, atividade da nitrato redutase foliar, assimilação máxima de CO₂ e estimativa da população endofítica de ICB117.

Acinetobacter sp. ICB117 is a nitrogen-fixing bacterium isolated from Brazilian sugarcane (Saccharum sp. variety SP791011) which releases amino acids, polyamines and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) when grown in vitro. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of Acinetobacter sp. ICB117 (a diazotrophic endophytic bacterium) inoculation on the growth of Saccharum sp. variety SP791011 (sugarcane). Sugarcane plants were obtained from stools with one bud, provided by CTC (Centro de Tecnologia Canavieira). Plants with 30 days old were submitted to the following treatments: control (C) - no bacterium inoculation and Hoagland solution without nitrogen; nitrate (N) - no bacterium inoculation and Hoagland solution with nitrate (15 mM); bacteria (B) - bacterium inoculation and Hoagland solution without nitrogen; Bacteria + nitrate (BN) - bacterial inoculation and Hoagland solution with nitrate (15 mM). Previously to the inoculation procedure, Acinetobacter sp. ICB117 was transformed with plasmid containing a gene that expresses the Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP). Plant material were sampled monthly (2 sampling times) in order to evaluate the following parameters: hight, number of leaves, dry mass, amino acids composition on xylem sap, leaf and root nitrogen and carbon content, leaf nitrate reductase activity, photosynthetic CO₂ assimilation and ICB117 endophytic population estimative. The results showed a very similar pattern along experimental period: inoculation with bacterium increased plant total dry mass (evidenced by roots), number of leaves and the assimilation of CO₂, but it did not influece significantly the shoot size of the plants and the leaf nitrate reductase activity. The endophytic ICB117 population was larger in plants treated without nitrate than in plants with nitrate inputs. Among the different treatments, alterations were not verified in the amino acids composition on xylem sap prevailing arginine in the sap of all the plants. In the roots, the carbon nitrogen (C/N) ratio was smaller in the plants treated with nitrate (N and BN); in the leaves, the C/N ratio was smaller only in the plants treated with nitrate without inoculation (N).