Screening of Endophytic Bacteria towards the Development of Cottage Industry: An in Vitro Study Lubanza Ngoma * , Keneilwe Mogatlanyane and Olubukola Oluranti Babalola Department of Biological Sciences, School of Environmental and Health Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Science and Technology, North-West University, Mafikeng Campus, Private Bag X2046, Mmabatho 2735, South Africa KEYWORDS Endophytic Bacteria. 16S-rDNA. PGPR Activities. Seed Germination ABSTRACT Discovery of novel technology which use beneficial endophytic bacteria associated with the root of Sorghum bicolor , Spinacia oleracea, and Zea mays was researched. Total of 23 endophytic bacteria were characterized on the basis biochemical analysis and plant growth-promoting traits. Results showed that Gram- negative (60.8%) were isolated more frequently than Gram-positive bacteria (39.1%). Approximately 65.2% were motile and the remaining 34.7% were non-motile. Eleven isolates were able to produce indole acetic (IAA) (0.15- 2.84 mgl -1 ). Eleven isolates showed the ability to produce ammonium. Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) production was observed in 10 isolates. It was observed that 16 isolates solubilized insoluble phosphates in Pikovskya plates (8- 60.5%). All the isolates tested were active against Fusarium oxysporum. Therefore, following these tests it can be concluded that 11 isolates exhibited differences and they were subjected to partial 16S-rDNA gene sequencing using polymerase chain reaction for phylogenetic analysis. MEGA 5.10 package was used to identify the following isolated bacteria: Pseudomonas sp. (KC010520), Ochrobactrum intermedium (KC010521), Ochrobactrum intermedium (KC010522), Ochrobactrum anthropi (KC010523), Ochrobactrum anthropi (KC010524) Ochrobactrum sp TOA62, and Ochrobactrum sp TOA64. Inoculation of Zea mays seeds with the identified bacterial showed a good level of germination (66%) compared to the control (44%). Address for correspondence: Telephone: +27183892838 Fax: +27183892134 E-mail: 24014028@nwu.ac.za, INTRODUCTION Over the past decades, agriculture produc- tion was regarded as the main target for human foods (Phat et al. 2012). Currently the popula- tion of the world is expected to reach 8 billion by the year 2025. As the world population increas- es, the problem of food security arises. This means that the increase of agriculture produc- tion has to meet the human need of the fast- growing population (Roger et al. 1994). The chal- lenges faced by the world are how to feed the increasing populations where there is little food. To solve the problem, farmers have to apply nat- ural fertilizers to agriculture land. The objective is to increase the annual productivity and yield in farmers’ agricultural land (Elizabeth et al. 2004; Crawford et al. 2006). The insufficient food level of population has driven farmers to change their agricultural behavior which leads to the use of chemical fertilizer in order to meet the human demand. The purpose for applying chemical fer- tilizer to agriculture land was to promote high- yield of crop production (Crawford et al. 2006; Liu et al. 2009; Seng 2010). Over 15 million tons of P fertilizer is applied worldwide every year, of which up to 80% is lost into insoluble forms with Fe-,Al-, Ca- and Mg-ions, that is, forms unavailable to plants (Zhao et al. 2014). This application has led to serious environmental problems such as depletion of soil quality and health, rivers and ground water pollution, and emergence of resistant pathogens (Delmer 2005; Sununtar 2006). There is an increasing demand by governments today for safe chemical fertiliz- ers with low toxicity, short term persistence, and low mobility in the soil to avoid ground-water contamination and limited effects on organisms (Sununtar 2006). These concerns about environ- mental health and safety have led to increased restrictions on a variety of chemical fertilizers in- cluding those used to suppress plant diseases (Josephine 2005). In addition, the growing cost of biofertilizers, particularly has led to a search for substitutes for these products (Josephine 2005). Knowing and understanding the nega- tive effects of chemical fertilizers in agriculture, novel technology using the application of en- dophytic bacteria associated with plants, also called biofertilizers may help to sustain produc- tivity and improve plant health (OECD 2004). This group of bacteria is considered as an environmentally friendly alternative solution of © Kamla-Raj 2014 J Hum Ecol, 47(1): 45-63 (2014)