scholarly journals Rhizobial Diversity and Nodulation Characteristics of the Extremely Promiscuous Legume Sophora flavescens

2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (12) ◽  
pp. 1338-1352 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yin Shan Jiao ◽  
Yuan Hui Liu ◽  
Hui Yan ◽  
En Tao Wang ◽  
Chang Fu Tian ◽  
...  

In present study, we report our extensive survey on the diversity and biogeography of rhizobia associated with Sophora flavescens, a sophocarpidine (matrine)-containing medicinal legume. We additionally investigated the cross nodulation, infection pattern, light and electron microscopies of root nodule sections of S. flavescens infected by various rhizobia. Seventeen genospecies of rhizobia belonging to five genera with seven types of symbiotic nodC genes were found to nodulate S. flavescens in natural soils. In the cross-nodulation tests, most representative rhizobia in class α-Proteobacteria, whose host plants belong to different cross-nodulation groups, form effective indeterminate nodules, while representative rhizobia in class β-Proteobacteria form ineffective nodules on S. flavescens. Highly host-specific biovars of Rhizobium leguminosarum (bv. trifolii and bv. viciae) and Rhizobium etli bv. phaseoli could establish symbioses with S. flavescens, providing further evidence that S. flavescens is an extremely promiscuous legume and it does not have strict selectivity on either the symbiotic genes or the species-determining housekeeping genes of rhizobia. Root-hair infection is found as the pattern that rhizobia have gained entry into the curled root hairs. Electron microscopies of ultra-thin sections of S. flavescens root nodules formed by different rhizobia show that the bacteroids are regular or irregular rod shape and nonswollen types. Some bacteroids contain poly-β-hydroxybutyrate (PHB), while others do not, indicating the synthesis of PHB in bacteroids is rhizobia-dependent. The extremely promiscuous symbiosis between S. flavescens and different rhizobia provide us a basis for future studies aimed at understanding the molecular interactions of rhizobia and legumes.

2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (5) ◽  
pp. 568-575 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Robledo ◽  
Esther Menéndez ◽  
Jose Ignacio Jiménez-Zurdo ◽  
Raúl Rivas ◽  
Encarna Velázquez ◽  
...  

The infection of legume plants by rhizobia is tightly regulated to ensure accurate bacterial penetration, infection, and development of functionally efficient nitrogen-fixing root nodules. Rhizobial Nod factors (NF) have key roles in the elicitation of nodulation signaling. Infection of white clover roots also involves the tightly regulated specific breakdown of the noncrystalline apex of cell walls in growing root hairs, which is mediated by Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. trifolii cellulase CelC2. Here, we have analyzed the impact of this endoglucanase on symbiotic signaling in the model legume Medicago truncatula. Ensifer meliloti constitutively expressing celC gene exhibited delayed nodulation and elicited aberrant ineffective nodules, hampering plant growth in the absence of nitrogen. Cotreatment of roots with NF and CelC2 altered Ca2+ spiking in root hairs and induction of the early nodulin gene ENOD11. Our data suggest that CelC2 alters early signaling between partners in the rhizobia-legume interaction.


2014 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-22
Author(s):  
Barbara Łotocka ◽  
Joanna Kopcińska ◽  
Władysław Golinowski

Morphogenesis of ineffective root nodules initiated on the roots of white clover 'Astra' by the <em>Rhizobium leguminosarum</em> biovar. <em>trifolii</em> strains ANU261 (Tn5 insertion in nod 1 gene) and ANU262 (Tn5 insertion in nod J gene) was investigated. Following changes were observed, as compared to the wild-type nodulation: the exaggerated, not delayed reaction of root hairs; the delay in nodulation with the number of nodules the same as in plants inoculated with a wild strain; the formation and organization of the nodule primordium not changed in comparison with the wild-type nodules; infection threads abnormally branched and diffusing with bacteria deprived of light zone and enriched with storage material; infected cells of bacteroidal tissue abnormally strongly osmiophilic and only slightly vacuolated; symbiosomes with very narrowed peribacteroidal space, subject to premature degradation; abnormal accumulation of starch in the nodule tissues; nodule development blocked at the stage of laterally situated meristem and single nodule bundle; inhibition of divisions in the meristem and vacuolation of its cells; the appearance of single cells with colonies of saprophytic rhizobia embedded in the fibrillar matrix in the old, degraded regions of the bacteroidal tissue.


2014 ◽  
Vol 67 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-29
Author(s):  
Barbara Łotocka ◽  
Władysław Golinowski

On the basis of cytophotometric measurements a slightly increased DNA level in the nuclei of curled root hairs containing infection threads was observed in white clover inoculated with wild and mutant strains of <em>Rhizobium leguminosarum</em> biovar. <em>trifolii</em>, as compared to normal root hairs of te same plants. Cells of the root nodule primordia in 72 h after the inoculation, as compared to the root primary cortex, demonstrated an increased level of the nuclear DNA. No differences were observed in the nuclear DNA contents in individual layers of the cortex of the 28 day-old nodules. Generally it was low, varying from 2c to 4c. The meristematic and bacteroidal tissues in the effective nodules were characterized by a higher DNA level, as compared to the respective zones in ineffective nodules induced with the strains ANU261 (<em>nod I<sup>*</sup></em>) and ANU262 (<em>nod J<sup>*</sup></em>). The DNA level in the effective bacteroidal tissue varied from 4c to 32c, while in the tissue containing the strain ANU26l only the 2c-8c nuclei could be found and in the tissue with the strain ANU262 - the 4c-16c nuclei.


2011 ◽  
Vol 24 (7) ◽  
pp. 798-807 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Robledo ◽  
José I. Jiménez-Zurdo ◽  
M. José Soto ◽  
Encarnación Velázquez ◽  
Frank Dazzo ◽  
...  

The establishment of rhizobia as nitrogen-fixing endosymbionts within legume root nodules requires the disruption of the plant cell wall to breach the host barrier at strategic infection sites in the root hair tip and at points of bacterial release from infection threads (IT) within the root cortex. We previously found that Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. trifolii uses its chromosomally encoded CelC2 cellulase to erode the noncrystalline wall at the apex of root hairs, thereby creating the primary portal of its entry into white clover roots. Here, we show that a recombinant derivative of R. leguminosarum bv. trifolii ANU843 that constitutively overproduces the CelC2 enzyme has increased competitiveness in occupying aberrant nodule-like root structures on clover that are inefficient in nitrogen fixation. This aberrant symbiotic phenotype involves an extensive uncontrolled degradation of the host cell walls restricted to the expected infection sites at tips of deformed root hairs and significantly enlarged infection droplets at termini of wider IT within the nodule infection zone. Furthermore, signs of elevated plant host defense as indicated by reactive oxygen species production in root tissues were more evident during infection by the recombinant strain than its wild-type parent. Our data further support the role of the rhizobial CelC2 cell wall–degrading enzyme in primary infection, and show evidence of its importance in secondary symbiotic infection and tight regulation of its production to establish an effective nitrogen-fixing root nodule symbiosis.


Genes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 111 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Peter W. Young ◽  
Sara Moeskjær ◽  
Alexey Afonin ◽  
Praveen Rahi ◽  
Marta Maluk ◽  
...  

Bacteria currently included in Rhizobium leguminosarum are too diverse to be considered a single species, so we can refer to this as a species complex (the Rlc). We have found 429 publicly available genome sequences that fall within the Rlc and these show that the Rlc is a distinct entity, well separated from other species in the genus. Its sister taxon is R. anhuiense. We constructed a phylogeny based on concatenated sequences of 120 universal (core) genes, and calculated pairwise average nucleotide identity (ANI) between all genomes. From these analyses, we concluded that the Rlc includes 18 distinct genospecies, plus 7 unique strains that are not placed in these genospecies. Each genospecies is separated by a distinct gap in ANI values, usually at approximately 96% ANI, implying that it is a ‘natural’ unit. Five of the genospecies include the type strains of named species: R. laguerreae, R. sophorae, R. ruizarguesonis, “R. indicum” and R. leguminosarum itself. The 16S ribosomal RNA sequence is remarkably diverse within the Rlc, but does not distinguish the genospecies. Partial sequences of housekeeping genes, which have frequently been used to characterize isolate collections, can mostly be assigned unambiguously to a genospecies, but alleles within a genospecies do not always form a clade, so single genes are not a reliable guide to the true phylogeny of the strains. We conclude that access to a large number of genome sequences is a powerful tool for characterizing the diversity of bacteria, and that taxonomic conclusions should be based on all available genome sequences, not just those of type strains.


Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 774
Author(s):  
Max Langer ◽  
Thomas Speck ◽  
Olga Speck

Although both the petiole and lamina of foliage leaves have been thoroughly studied, the transition zone between them has often been overlooked. We aimed to identify objectively measurable morphological and anatomical criteria for a generally valid definition of the petiole–lamina transition zone by comparing foliage leaves with various body plans (monocotyledons vs. dicotyledons) and spatial arrangements of petiole and lamina (two-dimensional vs. three-dimensional configurations). Cross-sectional geometry and tissue arrangement of petioles and transition zones were investigated via serial thin-sections and µCT. The changes in the cross-sectional geometries from the petiole to the transition zone and the course of the vascular bundles in the transition zone apparently depend on the spatial arrangement, while the arrangement of the vascular bundles in the petioles depends on the body plan. We found an exponential acropetal increase in the cross-sectional area and axial and polar second moments of area to be the defining characteristic of all transition zones studied, regardless of body plan or spatial arrangement. In conclusion, a variety of terms is used in the literature for describing the region between petiole and lamina. We prefer the term “petiole–lamina transition zone” to underline its three-dimensional nature and the integration of multiple gradients of geometry, shape, and size.


1978 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 151-174
Author(s):  
J.G. Robertson ◽  
M.P. Warburton ◽  
P. Lyttleton ◽  
A.M. Fordyce ◽  
S. Bullivant

Peribacteroid membranes and bacteroid envelope inner membranes have been isolated from developing lupin nodules. Isolation of the peribacteroid membranes was achieved by first preparing membrane-enclosed bacteroids free from other plant organelles or membranes. The peribacteroid membranes were then released by osmotic shock and purified by centrifugation to equilibrium on sucrose gradients. The bacteroids were broken in a pressure cell and the bacteroid envelope inner membranes were isolated using sucrose gradient fractionation of the bacteroid total envelope preparation. The density of the peribacteroid membranes decreased during the period of development of N2-fixation in lupin nodules from 1.148 g/ml for nodules from 12-day plants to 1.137 g/ml for nodules from 18-day plants. The density of the bacteroid envelope inner membranes from nodules from 18-day plants was 1–153 g/ml. The identity and homogeneity of the isolated membranes was established, by comparison with membranes in intact nodules, using phosphotungstic acid and silver staining of thin sections and particle densitites on faces of freeze-fracture replicas of the membranes. Analyses for NADH oxidase and succinate dehydrogenase, spectral analyses and gel-electrophoretic analysis of proteins were also used to characterize the membrane and soluble protein fractions from the nodules. The ratio of lipid to protein was 6.1 for the peribacteroid membranes and 2.5 for the bacteroid envelope inner membranes. Leghaemoglobin was localized in the plant cytoplasm in lupin nodules and not in the peribacteroid space.


2019 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-67
Author(s):  
Anna Lenart-Boroń ◽  
Tadeusz Zając ◽  
Piotr Mateusz Boroń ◽  
Agnieszka Klimek-Kopyra

SummaryThe bacterial nodulation (nod) genes are essential in the formation process of root nodules. This study was aimed to verify the occurrence of nodule-associated bacteria in two pea varieties (“Tarchalska” and “Klif ”) inoculated withRhizobiuminoculants – Nitragine™ and a noncommercial one produced by the Polish Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation (IUNG). The number of colonies isolated on yeast extract mannitol (YEM) agar from the nodules of “Klif ” inoculated with IUNG inoculants was significantly higher than the number of colonies isolated from other variants. Species identification was based on sequencing of 16S rDNA, which revealed that despite careful sterilization of nodules, sequences of other bacterial species were detected. Among them, one sequence belonged toRhizobium leguminosarum(isolated from IUNG inoculant). To assess the presence of nodulation-capableRhizobium, amplification of thenodCgene was performed, which revealed that of 29 samples, 19 were positive. The remaining isolates, including reference strain and bacteria isolated from Nitragine™, lacked this gene. The results show that pea nodules harbor a very diverse community of bacteria. The lack ofnodCgene in some strains isolated from plants inoculated with Nitragine™ and with IUNG inoculant proves that even ifR. leguminosarumare abundant, they may not be efficient in nodulation.


2017 ◽  
Vol 63 (5) ◽  
pp. 450-463 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zoulikha Bouchiba ◽  
Zineb Faiza Boukhatem ◽  
Zohra Ighilhariz ◽  
Nouria Derkaoui ◽  
Benaissa Kerdouh ◽  
...  

A total of 51 bacterial strains were isolated from root nodules of Scorpiurus muricatus sampled from 6 regions of western Algeria. Strain diversity was assessed by rep-PCR amplification fingerprinting, which grouped the isolates into 28 different clusters. Partial nucleotide sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene and BLAST analysis revealed that root nodules of S. muricatus were colonized by different species close to Rhizobium vignae, Rhizobium radiobacter, Rhizobium leguminosarum, Phyllobacterium ifriqiyense, Phyllobacterium endophyticum, Starkeya sp., and Pseudomonas sp. However, none of these strains was able to form nodules on its host plant; even nodC was present in a single strain (SMT8a). The inoculation test showed a great improvement in the growth of inoculated plants compared with noninoculated control plants. A significant amount of indole acetic acid was produced by some strains, but only 2 strains could solubilize phosphate. In this report we described for the first time the diversity of bacteria isolated from root nodules of S. muricatus growing in different regions in western Algeria and demonstrated their potential use in promoting plant growth.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document