Legumes are very important plants playing a central role in biological research. They are a key component of sustainable agricultural systems because of symbiotic nitrogen fixation and other beneficial symbiosis with mycorrhizal fungi. Studies on most of the major leguminous crops are hampered by large genome sizes and other disadvantages which have hindered the isolation and characterisation of genes with important roles in legume biology and agriculture. For this reason Lotus japonicus was chosen as a model species for legume research some ten years ago. Since then, many groups around...

Legumes are very important plants playing a central role in biological research. They are a key component of sustainable agricultural systems because of symbiotic nitrogen fixation and other beneficial symbiosis with mycorrhizal fungi. Studies on most of the major leguminous crops are hampered by large genome sizes and other disadvantages which have hindered the isolation and characterisation of genes with important roles in legume biology and agriculture. For this reason Lotus japonicus was chosen as a model species for legume research some ten years ago. Since then, many groups around...