Biological Nitrogen Fixation: Towards Poverty Alleviation Through Sustainable Agriculture: Proceedings of the 15th International Nitrogen Fixation Con

ISBN-13: 9789048178216 / Angielski / Miękka / 2010 / 392 str.

Felix D. Dakora; Samson B. M. Chimphango; Alex J. Valentine

Opis

Poverty is a severe problem in Africa, Asia, South America and even in pockets of the developed world. Addressing poverty alleviation via the expanded use of biological nitrogen fixation in agriculture was the theme of the 15th International Congress on Nitrogen Fixation. Because nitrogen-fixation research is multidisciplinary, exploiting its benefits for agriculture and environmental protection has continued to attract research by diverse groups of scientists, including chemists, biochemists, plant physiologists, evolutionary biologists, ecologists, agricultural scientists, extension agents, and inoculant producers. The 15th International Congress on Nitrogen Fixation was held jointly with the 12th International Conference of the African Association for Biological Nitrogen Fixation. This joint Congress was hosted in South Africa at the Cape Town International Conv- tion Centre, 21 26 January 2007, and was attended by about 200 registered participants from 41 countries world-wide. During the Congress, some 100 oral and approximately 80 poster papers were presented. The wide range of topics covered and the theme of the Congress justifies this book s title, Nitrogen Fixation: Applications to Poverty Alleviation."

Spis treści

Keynote Address.- Gene Discovery and Marker Development in Crop Legumes.- Towards Sustainable Agriculture.- Nutrient Mining or Carbon Sequestration? BNF Inputs Can Make the Difference.- Tripartite Symbiotic System of pea (Pisum sativum L.): Applications in Sustainable Agriculture.- Plant Growth-Promoting Diazotrophs: Optimising their Role as Key Agents in Achieving More Efficient Nutrient Use by Field Crops.- Multi-Factor Approach to Identifying Cowpea Genotypes with Superior Symbiotic Traits and Higher Yield for Africa.- BNF Applications for Poverty Alleviation.- Biological Nitrogen Fixation in Resource-Poor Agriculture in South Africa.- Combating Food Insecurity on Sandy Soils in Zimbabwe: The Legume Dilemma.- Nitrogen Fixation in Agriculture: Forage Legumes in Sweden as an Example.- Biological Nitrogen Fixation with the Soybean and Common Bean Crops in the Tropics.- Biodiversity in Amazonian Dark Earth: A Contribution for the Sustainability of Tropical Soils from the Microbial Symbioses.- Techniques for the Quantification of Plant-Associated Biological Nitrogen Fixation.- Measuring N2 Fixation in Legumes Using 15N Natural Abundance: Some Methodological Problems Associated with Choice of Reference Plants.- How to Quantify Biological Nitrogen Fixation in Forage Legumes in the Field.- Nodular Diagnosis for Integrated Improvement of Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation in Cropping Systems.- Evaluation of Seed and Liquid Inoculation on Biological Nitrogen Fixation and Grain Yield of Soybean.- Initiation, Localization, and Growth of Nodules within the Root System of Pea as Affected by Assimilate Availability.- Enhanced Early Nodulation of Medicago Truncatula Co-Inoculated with Sinorhizobium Medicae and Achromobacter Xylosoxidans.- Gene Transfer in the Environment Promotes the Rapid Evolution of a Diversity of Suboptimal and Competitive Rhizobia for Biserrula pelecinus L..- Effect of a Genetically Modified Rhizobium leguminosarum Strain on Bacterial and Fungal Diversity in the Rhizosphere of Pisum sativum.- Inoculants for Sugar Cane: The Scientific Bases for the Adoption of the Technology for Biofuel Production.- Detection and Enumeration of Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria.- Nodulated Tree Legumes and Their Symbiotic Bradyrhizobium in African and South-American Tropical Rainforests.- Innovative Microbial Approaches to the Management of Acacia senegal Trees to Improve and Sustain Gum-Arabic Production in Sub-Saharan Africa.- Acacia Species Used for Revegetation in South-Eastern Australia Require More than One Multi-Strain Rhizobial Inoculant.- Management of Symbionts in Calliandra (Calliandra calothyrsus Meisn., Leguminosae) Based Agroforestry Systems to Improve Growth, Productivity, Quality of Fodder, and Biological N2 Fixation.- Legume Trees in the Coffee Agroecosystem of Puerto Rico.- Nodulation Adapted to Habitat Submergence.- Mechanism of Quick and Reversible Inhibition of Soybean Nodule Growth and Nitrogen Fixation Activity by Nitrate and its Metabolites.- Inhibition of Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation by Dark Chilling in Soybean.- Do Nodule Phosphatase and Phytase Link with the Phosphorus Use Efficiency for N2-Dependent Growth in Phaseolus vulgaris ?.- The Alternative Sigma Factor rpoH2 is Required for Salt Tolerance in Sinorhizobium sp. Strain BL3.- Root-Nodule Bacteria of Arid-Zone Legumes for Use in Rehabilitation in the Shark Bay World Heritage Area.- Effect of Vegetation Clearing on the Nitrogen Cycle and Water Resource Quality in South Africa.- Biorhizoremediation of Heavy Metals Toxicity Using Rhizobium-Legume Symbioses.- The Commercialisation of Small Holder Agriculture Through Biological Nitrogen Fixation (BNF) in Soybean.- Estimates of N2 Fixation in Cowpea Grown in Farmers’ Fields in the Upper West Region of Ghana.- Integrating N2-Fixing Legumes, Soils, and Livelihoods in Southern Africa: A Consortium Approach.- Distribution of Promiscuous Soyabean Rhizobia in Some Zimbabwean Soils.- Ecophysiological Studies of Legumes in Botswana: Types of Bacterial Strains from Root Nodules of Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.) and an Assessment of the Symbiotic Status of Grain Legumes Using 15N Natural Abundance.- Symbiotic N Nutrition and Yield of Cowpea Genotypes under Different Plant Densities and Cropping Systems.- The Diversity of Root Nodule Bacteria Associated with Lebeckia Species in South Africa.- Rhizobial Diversity Associated with South African Legumes.- Diversity and Competitiveness of Rhizobia of the Legume Tree Acacia Nilotica in Senegal.- Effects of Rock Phosphate on Indigenous Rhizobia Associated with Sesbania sesban.- Effect of Added Fertilizers on N2 Fixation and Plant Performance of Shrubby Legumes.- Genetic Diversity of Acacia seyal Del. Rhizobial Populations Indigenous to Senegalese Soils in Relation to Salinity and pH of the Sampling Sites.- Potential Effects of Elevated UV-B Radiation on N2-Fixing Legumes in Agricultural Systems.- Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Colonization and Nodulation Improve Flooding Tolerance in Pterocarpus officinalis jacq. Seedlings.- Mycorrhizal Colonization Improves Growth and Nutrition of an Invasive Legume in a Mediterranean Ecosystem.- Nutritional and Photosynthetic Performance of Invasive and Indigenous Legumes in a Mediterranean Ecosystem.- Ecology and Phytochemical Analysis of the Medicinal Legume, Sutherlandia frutescens (L.)R. Br., at Two Locations.- Improving Chickpea Inoculation in the Northern Cropping Region of Australia.- Optimizing Chickpea Nodulation for Nitrogen Fixation and Yield in North-Western New South Wales, Australia.- Investigating Nitrogen Fixation in the Medicago-sinorhizobium Symbiosis.- Non-Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation in Soil, Litter, and Phyllosphere in Dry Chaco Forest of Argentina.- Inoculation and Competitiveness of a Bradyrhizobium sp. Strain in Soils Containing Indigenous Rhizobia.- Diverse Role of Diazotrophs in the Rhizosphere.- Role of Nature’s Fertility Partners with Crop Protectants for Sustainable Agriculture.- Characterization of Bradyrhizobia Isolated from Root Nodules of Cytisus triflorus in the Rif Occidental of Morocco.- Diversity of Rhizobia Isolated from Nodules of Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) in Morocco.- Diversity of Rhizobia that Nodulate Colutea arborescens Isolated from Different Soils of Morocco.- Diversity of Rhizobia that Nodulate two Mediterranean Legumes, Adenocarpus decorticans and Retama menosperma.- Response of Common Bean and Fababean to Effective Nodulation in Salt- and Drought-Stressed Areas Around the Nile Delta.- Nodule Organogenesis and Plant Genomics.- Nod-Factor Perception in Medicago truncatula.- Nodulation Control in Legumes.- Bacteroid Differentiation is Linked to Evolution of High Diversity of Secreted Peptides in the Host Plant.- Functional Genomics of Soybean Root-Hair Infection.- Regulation of Nodule Organogenesis by Auxin Transport and Flavonoids.- Legume Agp-Extensins in Rhizobium Infection.- Glycoside Hydrolases from Legumes and Rhizobia at the Symbiotic Interface.- Transcript Profiling of Nodule Senescence in Medicago truncatula Delineates Distinct Phases and Mechanisms.- Comparison of Leaf Growth of Hypernodulation Soybean Mutants, NOD1-3, NOD2-4 and NOD3-7, with their Parent CV. Williams.- Actinorhizal Nodules and Gene Expression.- Characterization of Glutathione S-Transferases from Legume Root Nodules.- Overexpression of Flavodoxin in Alfalfa Nodules Leads to Delayed Senescence and High Starch Accumulation.- Effects of the Overexpression of a Soybean Cytosolic Glutamine Synthetase Gene (GS15) Linked to Organ-Specific Promoters on Growth and Nitrogen Accumulation of Pea Plants.- Role of PEPc Isoforms in Phosphate-Deficient Nodules.- Over-Expression of the Class 1 Hemoglobin Gene Contributes to Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation.- Structural and Comparative Genome Analysis of Lotus japonicus.- Novel Symbiotic Regulatory Genes Identified by Transcriptomics in Medicago truncatula.- Genome Synteny of Pea and Model Legumes: From Mutation through Genetic Mapping to the Genes.- The Medicago truncatula lin Mutant: Caught by Map-Based Cloning, Characterised by Transcriptomics.- Proteomic Analysis of Secreted Proteins of Glycine max and Medicago spp..- Proteomic and Transcriptomic Approaches to Study Global Genome Expression in Rhizobium etli and Sinorhizobium meliloti.- Control and Action of the Transcriptional Regulator TtsI of Rhizobium sp. NGR234.- Symbiotic Roles and Transcriptional Analysis of the Type III Secretion System in Mesorhizobium loti.- Toxin-Antitoxin Modules and Symbiosis.- Comparative Analysis of ArgC Protein Expression in Rhizobium Species.- Genistein-Dependent Regulatory Circuits in Bradyrhizobium japonicum.- Rhizobium leguminosarum Modification of Its Lipopoly-Saccharide During Symbiotic Bacteroid Development.- Altered Formations of Special Eubacterial Membrane Lipids Affect Bacterial Interactions with Eukaryotic Hosts.- Rhizobium leguminosarum bv viciae Strain LC-31: Analysis of Novel Bacteriocin and ACC Deaminase Gene(s).- Infection of Legumes by Beta-Rhizobia.- In Search of Beta-Rhizobia: Exploring the Symbionts of Mimosa in Brazil.- Effect of Phosphoglycerate Mutase Deficiency on the Free-Living and Symbiotic Life of Burkholderia phymatum.- Living Large: Elucidation of the Frankia EAN1pec Genome Sequence Shows Gene Expansion and Metabolic Versatility.- Phosphate-Dependent Gene Expression in Free-Living and Symbiotic Sinorhizobium meliloti.- Characterization of Bradyrhizobium elkanii Type III Secretion System.- Search for Nodulation Gene Inducer for Mesorhizobium loti Secreted from Roots of Lotus corniculatus.- Identification of BetX, a Periplasmic Protein Involved in Binding and Uptake of Proline Betaine and Glycine Betaine in Sinorhizobium meliloti.- H2O2 is Required for Optimal Infection-Thread Formation During Sinorhizobium meliloti Symbiosis.- Molecular Approaches for the Characterization of Bradyrhizobium Strains.- Genotypic and Phenotypic Variations Among Rhizobia Nodulating Red Clover in Soils of Northern Scandinavia.- NH4+ Nutrition Affects the Photosynthetic and Respiratory C Sinks in the Dual Symbiosis of a Mycorrhizal Legume.- The Effect of P Nutrition on AM Colonization, Nodule Development and the N and C Metabolism of Phaseous vulgaris.- Effects of Al3+ Toxicity on Photosynthetic and Respiratory Responses of Phaseolus vulgaris under P Deficiency.- Assimilate Allocation Between the Organic Acid and Amino Acid Pools in Lupinus angustifolius under P Stress.- African Species Belonging to the Tribe Psoraleeae Produce Ureides, a Symbiotic Trait Characteristic of the Phaseoleae.- New Look at Old Root-Nodule Bacteria: Molecular Techniques Uncover Novel Isolates.- Characterization of a Novel Non-Rhizobial Symbiont from Cicer arietinum.- Burkholderia tuberum Effectively Nodulates Cyclopia spp., but Not Aspalathus spp..- Endosymbiosis Formation Between a Nitrogen-Fixing Mix of Bacteria (Xanthomonas sp. + Arthrobacter sp.) and Wheat Root Cells.- Microbiology of Nitrogen Fixation.- Integrating Sinorhizobium meliloti Genomics: An Expression Library of the Genome.- Full Genome Sequence of Azotobacter vinelandii: Preliminary Analysis.- Transcriptional Profile of Bradyrhizobium elkanii Semia 587 in Symbiosis with Soybean (Glycine max L. Merrill) Analyzed by DNA Microarray.- Chronos, Chairos and Co-Evolution in Rhizobium-Legume Symbioses.- Genomics and Evolution of Bacteria: Nodulation, Nitrogen Fixation and the Rest of the Accessory Genome.- Evolution of Functional Diversity in Nitrogenase Homologs.- Diversity of Nitrogen Fixing Bacterial Community Assessed by Molecular and Microbiological Techniques.- Quorum Sensing in Root-Associated and Endopytic Diazotrophs.- Characterization of CHSA, a New Gene Controlling the Chemotactic Response in Azospirillum brasilense SP7.- Exopolysaccharide Production and Cell Aggregation in Azospirillum brasilense.- Gluconacetobacter diazotrophicus Pal5 Strain: Selection and Characterization of Mutants Deficient in Nitrogen-Fixation Ability.- The Role of Nif Proteins in Nitrogenase Maturation.- NifB-Dependent “in vitro” Synthesis of the Iron-Molybdenum Cofactor of Nitrogenase.- Azotobacter vinelandii Nitrogenase MoFe Protein: Pre-Steady State Spectroscopic Studies of the Metal Cofactors.- The Role of Iron Protein-Nucleotide Interaction and Conformational Change in Nitrogenase Catalysis.- The Mechanistic Basis of nif Gene Activation.- Architecture of ?54-Dependent Promoters: Interplay Between CRP-cAMP and PII-NTR Systems Forms a Novel Regulatory Network Between Carbon Metabolism and Nitrogen Assimilation in Escherichia coli.- Signals in the Regulation of Nitrogen Fixation and Ammonium Assimilation in the Photosynthetic Bacterium Rhodospirillum rubrum.- Defining the Roles PII and AmtB Proteins in the NH4+-Induced Post-Translational Control of Nitrogenase Activity.- Metabolic Regulation of Nitrogen Fixation in Rhodospirillum rubrum and Evidence for an Energy-Dependent Ammonium Transport System.- Membrane Sequestration of PII Proteins and Nitrogenase Regulation in Rhodobacter capsulatus.- Molybdenum Regulation of Nitrogen Fixation and Mo-Metabolism in Rhodobacter capsulatus.- Hydrogen Production by Cyanobacteria as a Potential Tool in Energy-Conversion Programmes.- Regulatory Interactions Involved in Nitrogen Signalling in Cyanobacteria: Partner Swapping and Role of PipX-PII Complexes in Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942.- Intercellular Transfer of Nitrogen in Heterocyst-Forming Cyanobacteria.- Genomics and Systems Biology Analysis of Cyanothece sp. ATCC 51142, a Unicellular, Diazotrophic Cyanobacterium with Robust Metabolic Rhythms.- Sinorhizobium Arboris Genes Are Differentially Expressed under Salt Stress.- Thiol-Redox Potential in Melanin Production and Nitrogen Fixation by Sinorhizobium meliloti.- Use of Chimeric Proteins to Investigate the Role of the GAF Domain of Herbaspirillum seropedicae NifA in the Response to Fixed Nitrogen.- Molecular Characterization of Symbiotic Bacteria Associated with the Pasture Legume Ornithopus sp. Native to Portugal.- Siderophore Genes in Gram Positive and Gram Negative Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria.- Genomics and Genetic Transformation in the Unicellular Diazotrophic Cyanobacterium Cyanothece sp. ATCC 51142.- Sipa, a Novel Regulator of the Photosynthesis-Related Sensor Histidine Kinase NblS.

Blurb

This volume covers recent developments in both fundamental and applied research in biological nitrogen fixation. It emphasizes the application of biological nitrogen fixation for sustainable agriculture, which should lead to poverty alleviation, environmental protection, and good agricultural practices generally. The roles of, and advances in, plant breeding, plant molecular biology, nodule physiology, and symbiotic and associative interactions between plants and microbes in sustaining agricultural productivity and soil fertility are described. The evolution of symbioses and nitrogen fixation are also covered in this volume. To ensure high agricultural productivity, while protecting the environment (both soil and water resources), requires plant cultivars that also respond to beneficial microbes. The volume, therefore, describes the physiology and genomics of nitrogen-fixing bacteria together with the biochemistry and molecular genetics of the nitrogenase enzyme that actually fixes atmospheric nitrogen to a usable form.

This volume, which covers the most recent data on the role of nitrogen fixation in agriculture and forestry and on the biology of both plants and nitrogen-fixing microbes, is intended to serve as a useful reference for students and researchers, both in the laboratory (academic and commercial) and in the field.