• Molecules and Cells
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.185-193
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• 2007

Symbiotic nitrogen fixation with nitrogen-fixing bacteria in the root nodules is a distinctly beneficial metabolic process in legume plants. Legumes control the nodule number and nodulation zone through a systemic negative regulatory system between shoot and root. Mutation in the soybean NTS gene encoding GmNARK, a CLAVATA1-like serine/threonine receptor-like kinase, causes excessive nodule development called hypernodulation. To examine the effect of nts mutation on the gene expression profile in the leaves, suppression subtractive hybridization was performed with the trifoliate leaves of nts mutant 'SS2-2' and the wild-type (WT) parent 'Sinpaldalkong2', and 75 EST clones that were highly expressed in the leaves of the SS2-2 mutant were identified. Interestingly, the expression of jasmonate (JA)-responsive genes such as vspA, vspB, and Lox2 were upregulated, whereas that of a salicylate-responsive gene PR1a was suppressed in the SS2-2 mutant. In addition, the level of JA was about two-fold higher in the leaves of the SS2-2 mutant than in those of the WT under natural growth conditions. Moreover, the JA-responsive gene expression persists in the leaves of SS2-2 mutant without rhizobia infection in the roots. Taken together, our results suggest that the nts mutation increases JA synthesis in mature leaves and consequently leads to constitutive expression of JA-responsive genes which is irrelevant to hypernodulation in the root.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.862-870
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• 2010

Cyperus rotundus L. is a perennial herb that was found to be dominating an area in northeast Brazil previously contaminated with petroleum. In order to increase our knowledge of microorganism-plant interactions in phytoremediation, the bacterial community present in the rhizosphere and roots of C. rotundus was evaluated by culture-dependent and molecular approaches. PCR-DGGE analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene showed that the bacterial community in bulk soil, rhizosphere, and root samples had a high degree of similarity. A complex population of alkane-utilizing bacteria and a variable nitrogen-fixing population were observed via PCR-DGGE analysis of alkB and nifH genes, respectively. In addition, two clone libraries were generated from alkB fragments obtained by PCR of bulk and rhizosphere soil DNA samples. Statistical analyses of these libraries showed that the compositions of their respective populations were different in terms of alkB gene sequences. Using culturedependent techniques, 209 bacterial strains were isolated from the rhizosphere and rhizoplane/roots of C. rotundus. Dot-blot analysis showed that 17 strains contained both alkB and nifH gene sequences. Partial 16S rRNA gene sequencing revealed that these strains are affiliated with the genera Bosea, Cupriavidus, Enterobacter, Gordonia, Mycoplana, Pandoraea, Pseudomonas, Rhizobium, and Rhodococcus. These isolates can be considered to have great potential for the phytoremediation of soil with C. rotundus in this tropical soil area.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.572-578
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• 2013

Azotobacter vinelandii, a strict aerobic nitrogen-fixing bacterium, has been extensively studied with regard to the ability of $N_2$-fixation due to its high expression of nitrogenase and fast growth. Because nitrogenase can also reduce cyanide to ammonia and methane, cyanide degradation by A. vinelandii has been studied for the application in the bioremediation of cyanide-contaminated wastewater. Cyanide degradation by A. vinelandii in NFS (nitrogen-free sucrose) medium was examined in terms of cell growth and cyanide reduction, and the results were applied for cyanide-contaminated cassava mill wastewater. From the NFS medium study in the 300 ml flask, it was found that A. vinelandii in the early stationary growth phase could reduce cyanide more rapidly than the cells in the exponential growth phase, and 84.4% of cyanide was degraded in 66 h incubation upon addition of 3.0 mM of NaCN. The resting cells of A. vinelandii could also reduce cyanide concentration by 90.4% with 3.0 mM of NaCN in the large-scale (3 L) fermentation with the same incubation time. Finally, the optimized conditions were applied to the cassava mill wastewater bioremediation, and A. vinelandii was able to reduce the cyanide concentration by 69.7% after 66 h in the cassava mill wastewater containing 4.0 mM of NaCN in the 3 L fermenter. Related to cyanide degradation in the cassava mill wastewater, nitrogenase was the responsible enzyme, which was confirmed by methane production. These findings would be helpful to design a practical bioremediation system for the treatment of cyanide-contaminated wastewater.

• The Korean Journal of Ecology
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• v.21 no.5_1
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• pp.465-473
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• 1998

This study was carried out to investigate the developmental process of plant community during the secondary succession and changes of soil properties in the burned areas lapsed 28 years after the forest fire in Mt.Palgong. The forest fire occurred on March, 1969 and the red pine (pinus densiflora) forest and its floor vegetation were burned down. The results are summarized as follows: the floristic composition of burned and unburned areas were composed of 49 and 48 species of vascular plants, respectively. The dominant species based on SDR4 of the burned sites were Lespedeza maximowicxii(87.75), Carex humilis (62.94), Rhododendron schippenbachii(55.78) and Miscanthus sinensis var.purpurascens (51.94). In contrast, Pinus densiflora (81.17), Quercus serrata (53.58)m Carex humilis (53.11) and Miscanthus sinenis var. purpuracens (52.42) were dominant in the unburned area. The biological spectra showed the $H-D_1-R_5-e$ type in both areas. The indices of similarity (CCs) between the two areas were 0.80. Degree of succession (DS) was 734 in the burned area and 809 in the unburned area. The species diversity (H) and evenness indices (e) in the burned and unburned areas were 2.05, 2.13 and 0.53, 0.55, respectively. Dominance index (C) in the burned and unburned areas were 0.30 and 0.32, respectively. Soil properties such as soil pH, content of organic matter, total nitrogen, total carbon, exchangeable potassium, sodium, calcium, and magnesium in burned area were comparatively higher than those of unburned area. Monthly changes of soil properties were of little significance except for some cases. These results suggest that there was relationship between trend of vegetation recovery and the changes of soil properties after the forest fire. Mixed forestation of fire-resistant species and nitrogen fixation species will be effective for reforestation after the forest fire.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.17-23
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• 2017

Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling cascades play critical roles in various cellular events in plants, including stress responses, innate immunity, hormone signaling, and cell specificity. MAPK-mediated stress signaling is also known to negatively regulate nitrogen-fixing symbiotic interactions, but the molecular mechanism of the MAPK signaling cascades underlying the symbiotic nodule development remains largely unknown. We show that the MtMKK5-MtMPK3/6 signaling module negatively regulates the early symbiotic nodule formation, probably upstream of ERN1 (ERF Required for Nodulation 1) and NSP1 (Nod factor Signaling Pathway 1) in Medicago truncatula. The overexpression of MtMKK5 stimulated stress and defense signaling pathways but also reduced nodule formation in M. truncatula roots. Conversely, a MAPK specific inhibitor, U0126, enhanced nodule formation and the expression of an early nodulation marker gene, MtNIN. We found that MtMKK5 directly activates MtMPK3/6 by phosphorylating the TEY motif within the activation loop and that the MtMPK3/6 proteins physically interact with the early nodulation-related transcription factors ERN1 and NSP1. These data suggest that the stress signaling-mediated MtMKK5/MtMPK3/6 module suppresses symbiotic nodule development via the action of early nodulation transcription factors.

• Journal of Ecology and Environment
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.31-40
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• 2022

Background: Plant vegetation appears in heterogeneous and patchy forms in arid and semi-arid regions. In these regions, underneath the plant patches and the empty spaces between them are covered by biological soil crusts (moss, lichen, cyanobacteria, and fungi). Biological soil crusts lead to the formation and development of fertile islands in between vegetation patches via nitrogen and carbon fixation and the permeation of runoff water and nutrients in the soil. Results: The present study has investigated the association of biological soil crusts, the development of fertile islands, and the formation of plant patches in part of the Takht-e Soltan protected area, located in Khorasan Razavi Province, Iran. Three sites were randomly selected as the working units and differentiated based on their geomorphological characteristics to the alluvial fan, hillslope, and fluvial terrace landforms. Two-step systematic random sampling was conducted along a 100-meter transect using a 5 m² plot at a 0-5 cm depth in three repetitions. Fifteen samplings were carried out at each site with a total of 45 samples taken. The results showed that the difference in altitude has a significant relationship with species diversity and decreases with decreasing altitude. Results have revealed that the moisture content of the site, with biocrust has had a considerable increase compared to the other sites, helping to form vegetation patterns and fertile islands. Conclusions: The findings indicated that biological crusts had impacted the allocation of soil parameters. They affect the formation of plant patches by increasing the soil's organic carbon, nitrogen, moisture and nutrient content provide a suitable space for plant growth by increasing the soil fertility in the inter-patch space.

• Korean Journal of Soil Science and Fertilizer
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.399-405
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• 1984

The results of these experiments which were carried out to investigate the effects of rice straw for nitrogen metabolism and acetylene reducing activity, during rice plants were cultured under the percolated condition, are as follows. Azotobacter had tendency to increase with the passage of time, but decreased when rice straw was added. Population change of Clostridia was little as rice grew. Blue green algae increased until heading stage but decreased after the stage. And the application of rice straw increased the number of microorganisms. Thiorhodaceae were never detected, but yeast tended to increase slightly with passing time. Acetylene reducing activity was increased with increasing the number of nitrogen fixing microorganisms, and nitrogen fixing activity was between 0.2kg N/10 a and 0.4kg N/10 a during the growing season of rice plants. Though acetylene reducing activity was promoted by the use of rice plants on non-plant area, but the activity was not clearly affected by percolation.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Crop Science Conference
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• 2017.06a
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• pp.308-308
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• 2017

The low and unstable yield of soybean has been a major problem in Japan. Excess soil moisture conditions are one of the major factors to restrict soybean productivity. More than 80 % of soybean crops are cultivated in converted paddy fields which often have poor drainage. In central and eastern regions of Japan, the early vegetative growth of soybean tends to be restricted by the flooding damage because the early growth period is overlapped with the rainy season. Field observation shows that induced excess water stress in early vegetative stage reduces dry matter production by decreasing intercepted radiation by leaf and radiation use efficiency (RUE) (Bajgain et al., 2015). Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the responses of soybean growth for excess water conditions to assess these effects on soybean productions. In this study, we aim to modify the soybean crop model (Sinclair et al., 2003) by adding the components of the restriction of leaf area development and RUE for adaptable to excess water conditions. This model was consist of five components, phenological model, leaf area development model, dry matter production model, plant nitrogen model and soil water balance model. The model structures and parameters were estimated from the data obtained from the field experiment in Tsukuba. The excess water effects on the leaf area development were modeled with consideration of decrease of blanch emergence and individual leaf expansion as a function of temperature and ground water level from pot experiments. The nitrogen fixation and nitrogen absorption from soil were assumed to be inhibited by excess water stress and the RUE was assumed to be decreasing according to the decline of leaf nitrogen concentration. The results of the modified model were better agreement with the field observations of the induced excess water stress in paddy field. By coupling the crop model and the ground water level model, it may be possible to assess the impact of excess water conditions for soybean production quantitatively.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.266-271
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• 2001

Soybean can produce high-N residue due to N-fixation, so soybean rotation may increase yield of subsequent corn and reduce N fertilizer on the corn fairly. To find out the contribution of nitrogen to subsequent corn following soybean cultivation, soil nitrate, corn yield, and nitrogen uptake were measured for three continuous corn cropping years after soybean rotation. Three N rates of 0, 80, and 160 kg/ha were applied to three continuous corn following soybean cropping. At 6-leaf stage, soil nitrate amount at the soil depth of 0-30cm ranged from 60 to 80 kgN/ha higher in the first corn cropping year than that in the second and third corn cropping years. Judging from corn N status such as SPAD value, N concentration of ear-leaf and stover at silking stage, N contribution of previous soybean to corn in the first corn year was N fertilizer of approximately 80 kg N/ha. Stover N uptake at silking stage increased from 47 to 52 kg N/ha at the 0, and 80 kg N/ha of N rates in the first corn cropping year compared with those in the second and third corn cropping years. Corn grain yield at the 0 kg N/ha of N rate was 6-7 ton/ha higher in the first corn cropping year than that in the second and third corn cropping years, respectively. When compared the first corn year following soybean cropping with the second and third corn cropping years, N uptake of grain and stover at harvest with low N rates such as 0 and 80 kg N/ha increased from 45 to 67kg N/ha, from 35 to 60 kg N/ha, respectively. N uptake of whole plant by soybean rotation increased from 93 to 118 kg N/ha in the first year compared with that in the second and third corn cropping years. However, the N contribution by soybean cropping was small in the second and third continuous corn cropping years. Therefore, it was concluded that the nitrogen fertilizer of 80-100 kg N/ha in the first corn cropping year could be saved by soybean rotation and annual alternative corn-soybean rotation could be the best rotation system.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.95-105
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• 2020

BACKGROUND: In this study, in order to verify the effects of supplemented organic amendment fertilizers recommended by the soil testing on cabbages, we used various amounts of organic amendment fertilizers. The amount of organic amendment fertilizers was decided by calculating each ratio of inorganic nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium based on the recommended fertilizer composition. METHODS AND RESULTS: The cabbages subjected to treatments 1 and 2 showed similar or greater leaf colors (SPAD values), head heights, head widths, head weight, soil organic matter content, nitrate-nitrogen level, and conductivity after harvest, when compared with cabbages treated with chemical fertilizers. The phosphorus and potassium fixation in the soil were higher in the plot where cabbages were treated with chemical fertilizers, and the nutrient use efficiency was greater in the plots with organic amendments and mineral addition. CONCLUSION: The treatments 1 and 2 that were supplemented with 180-200% of nitrogen, 100-130% of phosphorus, and 185-250% of potassium in comparison to chemical fertilizers, applied by the inorganic ratios of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium can be used as organic amendment fertilizers for cabbages.