Ebook: Biological Nitrogen Fixation: Towards Poverty Alleviation through Sustainable Agriculture: Proceedings of the 15th International Nitrogen Fixation Congress and the 12th International Conference of the African Association for Biological Nitrogen Fixation

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.

---

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.

---

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.

Content:
Front Matter....Pages i-xxix
Gene Discovery and Marker Development in Crop Legumes....Pages 3-7
Nutrient Mining or Carbon Sequestration? BNF Inputs Can Make the Difference....Pages 11-14
Tripartite Symbiotic System of pea (Pisum sativum L.): Applications in Sustainable Agriculture....Pages 15-17
Plant Growth-Promoting Diazotrophs: Optimising their Role as Key Agents in Achieving More Efficient Nutrient Use by Field Crops....Pages 19-22
Multi-Factor Approach to Identifying Cowpea Genotypes with Superior Symbiotic Traits and Higher Yield for Africa....Pages 23-24
BNF Applications for Poverty Alleviation....Pages 25-26
Biological Nitrogen Fixation in Resource-Poor Agriculture in South Africa....Pages 27-28
Combating Food Insecurity on Sandy Soils in Zimbabwe: The Legume Dilemma....Pages 29-30
Nitrogen Fixation in Agriculture: Forage Legumes in Sweden as an Example....Pages 31-32
Biological Nitrogen Fixation with the Soybean and Common Bean Crops in the Tropics....Pages 33-34
Biodiversity in Amazonian Dark Earth: A Contribution for the Sustainability of Tropical Soils from the Microbial Symbioses....Pages 35-36
Techniques for the Quantification of Plant-Associated Biological Nitrogen Fixation....Pages 37-41
Measuring N2 Fixation in Legumes Using 15N Natural Abundance: Some Methodological Problems Associated with Choice of Reference Plants....Pages 43-45
How to Quantify Biological Nitrogen Fixation in Forage Legumes in the Field....Pages 47-48
Nodular Diagnosis for Integrated Improvement of Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation in Cropping Systems....Pages 51-55
Evaluation of Seed and Liquid Inoculation on Biological Nitrogen Fixation and Grain Yield of Soybean....Pages 57-58
Initiation, Localization, and Growth of Nodules within the Root System of Pea as Affected by Assimilate Availability....Pages 59-60
Gene Transfer in the Environment Promotes the Rapid Evolution of a Diversity of Suboptimal and Competitive Rhizobia for Biserrula pelecinus L.....Pages 61-62
Inoculants for Sugar Cane: The Scientific Bases for the Adoption of the Technology for Biofuel Production....Pages 63-64
Detection and Enumeration of Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria....Pages 65-66
Nodulated Tree Legumes and Their Symbiotic Bradyrhizobium in African and South-American Tropical Rainforests....Pages 67-68
Innovative Microbial Approaches to the Management of Acacia senegal Trees to Improve and Sustain Gum-Arabic Production in Sub-Saharan Africa....Pages 69-70
Management of Symbionts in Calliandra (Calliandra calothyrsus Meisn., Leguminosae) Based Agroforestry Systems to Improve Growth, Productivity, Quality of Fodder, and Biological N2 Fixation....Pages 73-75
Legume Trees in the Coffee Agroecosystem of Puerto Rico....Pages 77-78
Nodulation Adapted to Habitat Submergence....Pages 79-80
Mechanism of Quick and Reversible Inhibition of Soybean Nodule Growth and Nitrogen Fixation Activity by Nitrate and its Metabolites....Pages 81-82
Inhibition of Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation by Dark Chilling in Soybean....Pages 83-84
The Alternative Sigma Factor rpoH2 is Required for Salt Tolerance in Sinorhizobium sp. Strain BL3....Pages 85-86
Root-Nodule Bacteria of Arid-Zone Legumes for Use in Rehabilitation in the Shark Bay World Heritage Area....Pages 89-90
Effect of Vegetation Clearing on the Nitrogen Cycle and Water Resource Quality in South Africa....Pages 91-92
Biorhizoremediation of Heavy Metals Toxicity Using Rhizobium-Legume Symbioses....Pages 93-94
The Commercialisation of Small Holder Agriculture Through Biological Nitrogen Fixation (BNF) in Soybean....Pages 95-96
Estimates of N2 Fixation in Cowpea Grown in Farmers’ Fields in the Upper West Region of Ghana....Pages 97-98
Integrating N2-Fixing Legumes, Soils, and Livelihoods in Southern Africa: A Consortium Approach....Pages 99-100
Distribution of Promiscuous Soyabean Rhizobia in Some Zimbabwean Soils....Pages 101-104
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....Pages 107-107
Symbiotic N Nutrition and Yield of Cowpea Genotypes under Different Plant Densities and Cropping Systems....Pages 109-109
The Diversity of Root Nodule Bacteria Associated with Lebeckia Species in South Africa....Pages 111-111
Rhizobial Diversity Associated with South African Legumes....Pages 113-113
Diversity and Competitiveness of Rhizobia of the Legume Tree Acacia Nilotica in Senegal....Pages 115-116
Effect of Added Fertilizers on N2 Fixation and Plant Performance of Shrubby Legumes....Pages 117-117
Genetic Diversity of Acacia seyal Del. Rhizobial Populations Indigenous to Senegalese Soils in Relation to Salinity and pH of the Sampling Sites....Pages 119-120
Potential Effects of Elevated UV-B Radiation on N2-Fixing Legumes in Agricultural Systems....Pages 121-122
Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Colonization and Nodulation Improve Flooding Tolerance in Pterocarpus officinalis jacq. Seedlings....Pages 123-123
Mycorrhizal Colonization Improves Growth and Nutrition of an Invasive Legume in a Mediterranean Ecosystem....Pages 125-126
Nutritional and Photosynthetic Performance of Invasive and Indigenous Legumes in a Mediterranean Ecosystem....Pages 127-128
Ecology and Phytochemical Analysis of the Medicinal Legume, Sutherlandia frutescens (L.)R. Br., at Two Locations....Pages 129-130
Improving Chickpea Inoculation in the Northern Cropping Region of Australia....Pages 131-131
Optimizing Chickpea Nodulation for Nitrogen Fixation and Yield in North-Western New South Wales, Australia....Pages 133-134
Investigating Nitrogen Fixation in the Medicago-sinorhizobium Symbiosis....Pages 135-136
Non-Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation in Soil, Litter, and Phyllosphere in Dry Chaco Forest of Argentina....Pages 137-138
Inoculation and Competitiveness of a Bradyrhizobium sp. Strain in Soils Containing Indigenous Rhizobia....Pages 139-139
Diverse Role of Diazotrophs in the Rhizosphere....Pages 141-141
Role of Nature’s Fertility Partners with Crop Protectants for Sustainable Agriculture....Pages 143-143
Characterization of Bradyrhizobia Isolated from Root Nodules of Cytisus triflorus in the Rif Occidental of Morocco....Pages 145-145
Diversity of Rhizobia Isolated from Nodules of Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) in Morocco....Pages 147-147
Diversity of Rhizobia that Nodulate Colutea arborescens Isolated from Different Soils of Morocco....Pages 149-149
Response of Common Bean and Fababean to Effective Nodulation in Salt- and Drought-Stressed Areas Around the Nile Delta....Pages 151-151
Nodulation Control in Legumes....Pages 153-154
Bacteroid Differentiation is Linked to Evolution of High Diversity of Secreted Peptides in the Host Plant....Pages 155-155
Functional Genomics of Soybean Root-Hair Infection....Pages 157-157
Regulation of Nodule Organogenesis by Auxin Transport and Flavonoids....Pages 159-159
Legume Agp-Extensins in Rhizobium Infection....Pages 161-161
Glycoside Hydrolases from Legumes and Rhizobia at the Symbiotic Interface....Pages 163-163
Transcript Profiling of Nodule Senescence in Medicago truncatula Delineates Distinct Phases and Mechanisms....Pages 167-171
Comparison of Leaf Growth of Hypernodulation Soybean Mutants, NOD1-3, NOD2-4 and NOD3-7, with their Parent CV. Williams....Pages 173-176
Actinorhizal Nodules and Gene Expression....Pages 177-180
Characterization of Glutathione S-Transferases from Legume Root Nodules....Pages 181-182
Overexpression of Flavodoxin in Alfalfa Nodules Leads to Delayed Senescence and High Starch Accumulation....Pages 183-184
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....Pages 185-187
Role of PEPc Isoforms in Phosphate-Deficient Nodules....Pages 189-190
Over-Expression of the Class 1 Hemoglobin Gene Contributes to Symbiotic Nitrogen Fixation....Pages 191-192
Genome Synteny of Pea and Model Legumes: From Mutation through Genetic Mapping to the Genes....Pages 193-194
The Medicago truncatula lin Mutant: Caught by Map-Based Cloning, Characterised by Transcriptomics....Pages 195-199
Control and Action of the Transcriptional Regulator TtsI of Rhizobium sp. NGR234....Pages 203-204
Toxin-Antitoxin Modules and Symbiosis....Pages 205-206
Comparative Analysis of ArgC Protein Expression in Rhizobium Species....Pages 207-209
Altered Formations of Special Eubacterial Membrane Lipids Affect Bacterial Interactions with Eukaryotic Hosts....Pages 211-212
Infection of Legumes by Beta-Rhizobia....Pages 213-214
In Search of Beta-Rhizobia: Exploring the Symbionts of Mimosa in Brazil....Pages 217-219
Living Large: Elucidation of the Frankia EAN1pec Genome Sequence Shows Gene Expansion and Metabolic Versatility....Pages 221-222
Characterization of Bradyrhizobium elkanii Type III Secretion System....Pages 223-224
H2O2 is Required for Optimal Infection-Thread Formation During Sinorhizobium meliloti Symbiosis....Pages 225-226
Molecular Approaches for the Characterization of Bradyrhizobium Strains....Pages 227-228
Genotypic and Phenotypic Variations Among Rhizobia Nodulating Red Clover in Soils of Northern Scandinavia....Pages 231-232
Effects of Al3+ Toxicity on Photosynthetic and Respiratory Responses of Phaseolus vulgaris under P Deficiency....Pages 233-234
Assimilate Allocation Between the Organic Acid and Amino Acid Pools in Lupinus angustifolius under P Stress....Pages 235-235
African Species Belonging to the Tribe Psoraleeae Produce Ureides, a Symbiotic Trait Characteristic of the Phaseoleae....Pages 237-238
New Look at Old Root-Nodule Bacteria: Molecular Techniques Uncover Novel Isolates....Pages 239-240
Endosymbiosis Formation Between a Nitrogen-Fixing Mix of Bacteria (Xanthomonas sp. + Arthrobacter sp.) and Wheat Root Cells....Pages 241-242
Integrating Sinorhizobium meliloti Genomics: An Expression Library of the Genome....Pages 243-244
Full Genome Sequence of Azotobacter vinelandii: Preliminary Analysis....Pages 245-246
Transcriptional Profile of Bradyrhizobium elkanii Semia 587 in Symbiosis with Soybean (Glycine max L. Merrill) Analyzed by DNA Microarray....Pages 247-248
Chronos, Chairos and Co-Evolution in Rhizobium-Legume Symbioses....Pages 249-250
Genomics and Evolution of Bacteria: Nodulation, Nitrogen Fixation and the Rest of the Accessory Genome....Pages 251-252
Evolution of Functional Diversity in Nitrogenase Homologs....Pages 253-254
Diversity of Nitrogen Fixing Bacterial Community Assessed by Molecular and Microbiological Techniques....Pages 255-255
Quorum Sensing in Root-Associated and Endopytic Diazotrophs....Pages 259-259
Characterization of CHSA, a New Gene Controlling the Chemotactic Response in Azospirillum brasilense SP7....Pages 261-261
The Role of Nif Proteins in Nitrogenase Maturation....Pages 263-263
NifB-Dependent “in vitro” Synthesis of the Iron-Molybdenum Cofactor of Nitrogenase....Pages 265-265
The Role of Iron Protein-Nucleotide Interaction and Conformational Change in Nitrogenase Catalysis....Pages 267-267
The Mechanistic Basis of nif Gene Activation....Pages 269-270
Metabolic Regulation of Nitrogen Fixation in Rhodospirillum rubrum and Evidence for an Energy-Dependent Ammonium Transport System....Pages 271-271
Hydrogen Production by Cyanobacteria as a Potential Tool in Energy-Conversion Programmes....Pages 273-274
Regulatory Interactions Involved in Nitrogen Signalling in Cyanobacteria: Partner Swapping and Role of PipX-PII Complexes in Synechococcus sp. PCC 7942....Pages 275-276
Intercellular Transfer of Nitrogen in Heterocyst-Forming Cyanobacteria....Pages 277-277
Genomics and Systems Biology Analysis of Cyanothece sp. ATCC 51142, a Unicellular, Diazotrophic Cyanobacterium with Robust Metabolic Rhythms....Pages 279-280
Use of Chimeric Proteins to Investigate the Role of the GAF Domain of Herbaspirillum seropedicae NifA in the Response to Fixed Nitrogen....Pages 281-281
Molecular Characterization of Symbiotic Bacteria Associated with the Pasture Legume Ornithopus sp. Native to Portugal....Pages 283-284
Siderophore Genes in Gram Positive and Gram Negative Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria....Pages 285-285
Genomics and Genetic Transformation in the Unicellular Diazotrophic Cyanobacterium Cyanothece sp. ATCC 51142....Pages 287-288
Sipa, a Novel Regulator of the Photosynthesis-Related Sensor Histidine Kinase NblS....Pages 289-289
Back Matter....Pages 293-295
....Pages 297-298