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Rhizobium is a genus of Gram-negative soil bacteria that fix nitrogen. Rhizobium species form an endosymbiotic nitrogen-fixing association with roots of (primarily) legumes and other flowering plants. The bacteria colonize plant cells to form root nodules, where they convert atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia using the enzyme nitrogenase.
Rhizobia are a "group of soil bacteria that infect the roots of legumes to form root nodules". [2] Rhizobia are found in the soil and, after infection, produce nodules in the legume where they fix nitrogen gas (N 2) from the atmosphere, turning it into a more readily useful form of nitrogen. From here, the nitrogen is exported from the nodules ...
Nitrogen is the most commonly limiting nutrient in plants. Legumes use nitrogen fixing bacteria, specifically symbiotic rhizobia bacteria, within their root nodules to counter the limitation. Rhizobia bacteria convert nitrogen gas (N 2) to ammonia (NH 3) in a process called nitrogen fixation.
The host plant provides the bacteria with amino acids so they do not need to assimilate ammonia. [5] The amino acids are then shuttled back to the plant with newly fixed nitrogen. Nitrogenase is an enzyme involved in nitrogen fixation and requires anaerobic conditions. Membranes within root nodules are able to provide these conditions.
Some nitrogen-fixing bacteria have symbiotic relationships with plants, especially legumes, mosses and aquatic ferns such as Azolla. [4] Looser non-symbiotic relationships between diazotrophs and plants are often referred to as associative, as seen in nitrogen fixation on rice roots. Nitrogen fixation occurs between some termites and fungi. [5]
Rhizobium spp.—Gram-negative, symbiotic nitrogen fixing bacteria that usually form a symbiotic relationship with legume species. In some rhizobia, the nif genes are located on plasmids called 'sym plasmids' (sym = symbiosis) which contain genes related to nitrogen fixation and metabolism, while the chromosomes contain most of the housekeeping ...
Ensifer meliloti (formerly Rhizobium meliloti and Sinorhizobium meliloti) [10] are an aerobic, Gram-negative, and diazotrophic species of bacteria. S. meliloti are motile and possess a cluster of peritrichous flagella. [11] S. meliloti fix atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia for their legume hosts, such as alfalfa.
Bradyrhizobium and other rhizobia take atmospheric nitrogen and fix it into ammonia (NH 3) or ammonium (NH 4 +). Plants cannot use atmospheric nitrogen; they must use a combined or fixed form of the element. After photosynthesis, nitrogen fixation (or uptake) is the most important process for the growth and development of plants. [12]