Objective
Rhizobium bacteria can provide leguminous plants with a nitrogen source by entering the plant root, followed by inducing the formation of root nodules in which atmospheric nitrogen is converted into ammonia. Efficient N2-fixing rhizobia are applied world-wide as inoculants. Although often very effective, the potential of inoculation for increasing N2-fixation is much higher than presently achieved, since only 5 to 20 percent of the nodules are derived from highly competitive indigenous bacteria with usually a poor N2-fixing ability. A major breakthrough in this area has been reached in St. Petersburg where a new pea cultivar has been bred which can only be nodulated by the efficient nitrogen-fixing R. leguminosarum bv. vicia strain A1 and not by other (laboratory or indigenous) rhizobia. The highly efficient combination of the novel pea cultivar and strain A1 is at present being commercialised.
This project aims to elucidate the molecular basis of the extreme host-specificity of the new symbiosis. This knowledge will be useful to prevent breakdown of the specificity - and therefore of the efficiency - of the novel pea-Rhizobium combination. To this end Russian scientists will carry out research with groups in Bielefeld and Leiden on specificity in early signals (flavonoid nod gene inducers and lipo-oligosaccharide signals (Leiden) and specificity in the plant gene expression (Bielefeld)).
Topic(s)
Call for proposal
Data not availableFunding Scheme
Data not availableCoordinator
2300 RA Leiden
Netherlands