Award details

Understanding the molecular biology of symbiotic nitrogen fixation

Reference	BBS/E/J/00000012
Principal Investigator / Supervisor	Professor J Downie
Co-Investigators / Co-Supervisors
Institution	John Innes Centre
Department	John Innes Centre Department
Funding type	Research
Value (£)	3,387,010
Status	Completed
Type	Institute Project
Start date	01/04/1997
End date	30/04/2012
Duration	181 months

Abstract

Rhizobia play a very important role in agriculture by inducing nitrogen-fixing nodules on the roots of legumes such as peas, beans, clover and alfalfa. Nodule formation requires co-ordinated expression of many bacterial and plant genes. Establishment of the symbiosis can be divided into five phases: 1) attachment of rhizobia to roots; 2) signalling between rhizobia and legumes; 3) nodule morphogenesis and development; 4) surface interactions during nodule invasion by rhizobia and development of symbiosomes (the new nitrogen-fixing organelles); 5) establishment and maintenance of nitrogen fixation of symbiosomes. This project is principally aimed at understanding the first three stages in the process. In this project, we seek to determine:- The mechanism by which rhizobial nodulation factors elicit gene induction and nodule morphogenesis in legumes; The biochemical basis of host-specific interactions (why individual rhizobia nodulate only some host legumes); The reasons for population-density-dependent gene expression in rhizobia in the rhizosphere and how this influences nodulation and the spread of nodulation capacity among rhizobia; The role of the bacterial surface and secreted proteins and polysaccharides in binding to legume roots. It is fully expected that in understanding the signalling events that occur, we will reach a new perspective on the mechanisms involved in a wider range of signalling, morphogenic and developmental events in plants.

Summary

unavailable

Committee	Closed Committee - Plant & Microbial Sciences (PMS)
Research Topics	Crop Science, Microbiology, Plant Science, Soil Science
Research Priority	X – Research Priority information not available
Research Initiative	X - not in an Initiative
Funding Scheme	X – not Funded via a specific Funding Scheme

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