• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.49 no.1
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• pp.17-29
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• 2016

Though there is an abundant supply of nitrogen in the atmosphere, it cannot be used directly by the biological systems since it has to be combined with the element hydrogen before their incorporation. This process of nitrogen fixation ($N_2$-fixation) may be accomplished either chemically or biologically. Between the two elements, biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) is a microbiological process that converts atmospheric di-nitrogen ($N_2$) into plant-usable form. In this review, the genetics and mechanism of nitrogen fixation including genes responsible for it, their types and role in BNF are discussed in detail. Nitrogen fixation in the different agricultural systems using different methods is discussed to understand the actual rather than the potential $N_2$-fixation procedure. The mechanism by which the diazotrophic bacteria improve plant growth apart from nitrogen fixation such as inhibition of plant ethylene synthesis, improvement of nutrient uptake, stress tolerance enhancement, solubilization of inorganic phosphate and mineralization of organic phosphate is also discussed. Role of diazotrophic bacteria in the enhancement of nitrogen fixation is also dealt with suitable examples. This mini review attempts to address the importance of diazotrophic bacteria in nitrogen fixation and plant growth improvement.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.323-332
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• 1995

Effects of wintering and temperature on nitrogen fixation activity of nodules of Melilotus suaveolens Ledeb. grown in the field and growth chamber conditions were investigated. The biennial plants transfered to the growth chamber from winter field recovered the activity in 3 weeks of incubation and attained the maximum rate of $153{\mu}mol\;C_2H_4{\cdot}g$ fr wt $nodule^{-1}{\cdot}h^{-1}$ in 5 weeks. When root nodules which adapted to different temperatures, were pretreated with 10, 20 and $30^{\circ}C$ for 1 hour, and then transfered to $30^{\circ}C$, nitrogen fixation activity was promoted in the nodules exposed to lower field temperature ($12^{\circ}C$) with 1$0^{\circ}C$ pretreatment. M. suaveolens maintained nitrogen fixation activity in the wide range of temperatures, and was more tolerant to lower temperature than those of other woody leguminous plants, Diurnal changes of nodule activity showed increase with sunrise and decrease with sunset during spring and autumn, but the activity was inhibited during July and August because of high temperature with stron irradiation. Nitrogen fixation activity of annual plant appeared in mid-April, and showed two peaks (104 and 43 mol $C_2H_4{\cdot}g$ fr wt $nodule^{-1}{\cdot}h^{-1}$) in July and September, and then disappeared after October. Nitrogen fixation activity of biennial plant reappeared in mid-March after wintering and attained two peaks (102 and 82 ${\mu}mol\;C_2H_4{\cdot}g$ fr wt $nodule^{-1}{\cdot}h^{-1}$) in April and June of flowering period, and then disappeared after July due to plant withering by severe drought.

• Applied Biological Chemistry
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• v.48 no.3
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• pp.189-200
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• 2005

Biological nitrogen fixation is an important process for academic and industrial aspects. This review will briefly compare industrial and biological nitrogen fixation and cover the characteristics of biological nitrogen fixation studied in Azotobacter vinelandii. Various organisms can carry out biological nitrogen fixation and recently the researches on the reaction mechanism were concentrated on the free-living microorganism, A. vinelandii. Nitrogen fixation, which transforms atmospheric $N_2$ into ammonia, is chemically a reduction reaction requiring electron donation. Nitrogenase, the biological nitrgen fixer, accepts electrons from biological electron donors, and transfers them to the active site, FeMo-cofactor, through $Fe_4S_4$ cluster in Fe protein and P-cluster in MoFe protein. The electron transport and the proton transport are very important processes in the nitrogenase catalysis to understand its reaction mechanism, and the interactions between FeMo-cofactor and nitrogen molecule are at the center of biological nitrogen fixation mechanism. Spectroscopic studies including protein X-ray crystallography, EPR and $M{\ddot{o}}ssbauer$, biochemical approaches including substrate and inhibitor interactions as well as site-directed mutation study, and chemical approach to synthesize the FeMo-cofactor model compounds were used for biological nitrogen fixation study. Recent research results from these area were presented, and finally, a new nitrogenase reaction mechanism will be proposed based on the various research results.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.51-58
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• 1973

Three kinds of organic matter such as glucose, oxalic acid, and ethanol were added to the media(N-free or $NO_{3}$-riched) and their effects on the nitrogen fixation of Nostoc pruniforme were measured by manometric technique through the experiments in vivo. 1) The organic matters used in this experiments showed effective results as a role of substrate for the fixation of atmospheric nitrogen. 2) In the nitrogen-free medium treated with the both of flucose nad ethanol, the highest nitrogen uptakes were detected in the treated of low concentrations (glucose ; 0.1%, 0.5%, ethanol : 0.1%, 0.5%). On the contrary, the highest nitrogen uptakes in $NO_{3}$-riched medium were measured at the treated of high concentrations (glucose ; 2%, 1%, ethanol ; 1.5%, 1.0%). 3) The highest nitrogen uptakes in N-free medium treated with oxalic acid were measured at the concentration of 2% and 1%, respectively. In the medium of $NO_{3}$-riched, the nitrogen uptakes were in the opposite directions.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.35-41
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• 1997

Effects of cadmium on growth and nitrogen fixation activity of Melilotus suaveolens, a biennial legume plant dominating in the area of poor soil were quantitatively analyzed during the growing period. Cadmium treatments of 10, 30 and 100 ppm resulted in 12, 22 and 35% inhibition of plant height and 14, 25 nd 26% reduction of chlorophyll contents of leaves, respectively. The plant biomass reduced 51, 70 and 89% for leaves, 33, 50 and 59% for stems, and 42, 52 and 70% for roots, respectively by 10, 30 and 100 ppm Cd treatments. Cadmium contents of roots treated with 10, 30 and 100 ppm Cd were 62, 112 and 183 folds higher than that of the control, respectively. Cadmium contents of stems were about 1/2.2 of those of roots, but leaves contained only 1/27.8 of those of roots. Cadmium treatments resulted in increase of T/R ratios and decrease of F/C ratios significantly in the later growth period. Nodule formation was reduced to 8% in 42 days by the treatment of 100 ppm Cd. Specific nitrogen fixation activity of nodules attained 61.0, 24.0, 1.6 and 0.7 mol $C_2H_4{\cdot}g$ fr wt $nodule^{-1}{\cdot}h^{-1}$ on 42nd day, respectively for 0, 10. 30 and 100 ppm of Cd treatments. Total amount of nitrogen fixation per plant reduced by 73, 98 and 99% with the treatments of 10, 30 and 100 ppm Cd.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.362-367
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• 2008

The legume-rhizobia symbiosis is an important source of plant growth and nitrogen fixation for many agricultural systems. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of salinity stress on nitrogen fixation and growth of pea (Pisum sativum L.), which has antimutagenic activities against chemical mutagen, inoculated with R. leguminosarum bv. viciae cultured with additional plant-to-rhizobia signal compounds, naringenin (NA,15 uM), methyl-jasmonate (MJ, 50 uM) or both, under greenhouse conditions. Three salinity levels (0.6, 3.0 and $6.0\;dS\;m^{-1}$) were imposed at 3 days after transplanting and maintained through daily irrigations. Addition of signal compounds under non-stress and stress conditions increased dry weight, nodule numbers, leaf area and leaf greenness. The inducers increased photosynthetic rate under non-stress and stress conditions, by approximately 5-20% when compared to that of the non-induced control treatment. Under stress conditions, proline content was less in plants treated with plant-to-bacteria signals than the control, but phenol content was significantly increased, compared to that of the control. The study suggested that pre-incubation of bacterial cells with plant-to-bacteria signals could enhance pea growth, photosynthesis, nitrogen fixation and biomass under salinity stress conditions.

• Proceedings of the Botanical Society of Korea Conference
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• 1987.07a
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• pp.81-101
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• 1987

In an attempt to revies the informations about genes involved in symbiotic nitrogen fixation, developmental processes in which host plant interact with microbe during nodule formation were introduced first. The structure, function and regulation of the genes discussed were mainly about microbial genes; those involved in the process of nodule formation (nod-genes) and of nitrogen fixation (nif-genes). Informations about the host genes involved in the symbiosis were discussed briefly.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.93-100
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• 1990

The activity of symbiotic -fixation and environmental factors of Robinia pseudo-acacia L., bearing root nodules, were quantitatively analyzed during the growing period. Among changes of total nitrogen and phosphorus contents of each organ, leaves showed prominent decreases from the highest quantity of the early growing period to the lowest of the late period. The rhizosphere showed acidic pH and low level of nitrogen, phosphorus and organic matter contents during the growing period. -fixation activity of nodules initiated from April and showed the maximum value of 190 $\mu$/g DW/hr in late June and than decreased to 50$\mu$M/g DW/hr during the rainy and dry season. Another peak of the activity attained 246$\mu$M/g DW/hr in the late growing stage of September. The maximum value of nitrogen fixation activity was observed at the conditions of pH7, $25\{\circ}C$ of temperature and 20 Kpa of oxygen partial pressure.

• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.136-147
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• 2007

In an effort to identify possible microbes for seeking bioagents for remediation of herbicide-contaminated soils, seven species of phototrophic nonsulfur bacteria (Rhodobacter capsulatus and sphaeroides, Rhodospirillum rubrum, Rhodopseudomonas acidophila, blastica and viridis, Rhodomicrobium vannielii) were grown in the presence of the herbicide, butachlor, and bacterial growth rates and nitrogen fixation were measured with different carbon sources. Under general conditions, all species showed 17-53% reductions in growth rate following butachlor treatment. Under nitrogen-fixing conditions, Rb. capsulatus and Rs. rubrum showed 1-4% increases in the growth rates and 2-10% increases in nitrogen-fixing abilities, while the other 5 species showed decreases of 17-47% and 17-85%, respectively. The finding that Rp. acidophila, Rp. blastica, Rp. viridis and Rm. vannielii showed stronger inhibitions of nitrogenase activity seems to indicate that species in genera Rhodobacter and Rhodospirillum are less influenced by butachlor than those in Rhodopseudomonas and Rhodomicrobium in terms of nitrogen-fixing ability. Overall, nitrogenase activity was closely correlated with both growth rate and glutamine synthetase activity (representing nitrogen metabolism). When the carbon sources were compared, pyruvate (three carbons) was best for all species in terms of growth rate and nitrogen fixation, with malate (four carbons) showing intermediate values and ribose(five carbons) showing the lowest; these trends did not change in response to butachlor treatment. We verified that each of the 7 species had a plasmid ($12.2{\sim}23.5\;Kb$). We found that all 7 species could use butachlor as a sole carbon source and 3 species were controlled by plasmid-born genes, but it is doubtful whether plasmid-born genes were responsible to nitrogen fixation.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.261-268
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• 1987

A green house experiment was conducted to find out the differences in the amount of biologically fixed nitrogen and kjeldahl nitrogen on the different soil texture, kinds and amounts of fertilizer nitrogen under light (photosynthetic $N_2$-fixation) and dark (heterotrophic $N_2$-fixation) condition in submerged paddy soil. The reults obtained were summarized as follows; 1. The amount of biologically fixed nitrogen per mg carbon from different organic matter was obtained as 0.13 mg in glucose, 0.09 mg in rice straw, and 0.07 mg in refused mushroom compost and barley straw under 60 days of incubation. 2. Nitrogen fixing activities were decreased with increase of fertilizer nitrogen and those tendency was pronounced more in sandy soil with application of urea than that of ammonium sulfate. 3. The application of ammonium sulfate in sandy soil under light condition was increased the photosynthetic $N_2$-fixation and the applied urea was remarkably reduced the heterotrophic $N_2$-fixation in sandy soil. The proportion of biologically fixed total nitrogen after experiment in sandy soil was obtained as 25% for dark(heterotrophic $N_2$-fixation) and 75% for light (photosynthetic $N_2$-fixation) condition. On the other hand, very similar biological $N_2$-fixing tendency was obtained between kinds of nitrogen fertilizer and two light condition in clayey soil. 4. The kjeldahl nitrogen was remarkably decreased after experiment under dark condition with application of urea than that of light condition with ammonium sulfate, and no remarkable decreasing tendency was obtained in clayey soil between two kinds of fertilizer nitrogen. 5. The high significant positive correlationship was obtained between calculated biological nitrogen fixation by acetylene reducing activity and kjeldahl nitrogen after experiment under light (y=0.8488X-5.9632, $r=0.9928^{**}$, n=21) and dark (y=0.8795X-7.1056, $r=0.9782^{**}$, n=21) condition. In this experiment condition, conversion factors of 6:1 was obtained from biological nitrogen fixation to soil nitrogen.