Improved soybean root association of N-starved Bradyrhizobium japonicum

A Stringent-Response-Defective Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens Strain Does Not Activate the Type 3 Secretion System, Elicits an Early Plant Defense Response, and Circumvents NH4NO3-Induced Inhibition of Nodulation

When subjected to nutritional stress, bacteria modify their amino acid metabolism and cell division activities by means of the stringent response, which is controlled by the Rsh protein in alphaproteobacteria. An important group of alphaproteobacteria are the rhizobia, which fix atmospheric N2 in symbiosis with legume plants. Although nutritional stress is common for rhizobia while infecting legume roots, the stringent response has scarcely been studied in this group of soil bacteria. In this report, we obtained a mutant with a kanamycin resistance insertion in the rsh gene of Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens, the N2-fixing symbiont of soybean. This mutant was defective for type 3 secretion system induction, plant defense suppression at early root infection, and nodulation competition. Furthermore, the mutant produced smaller nodules, although with normal morphology, which led to lower plant biomass production. Soybean (Glycine max) genes GmRIC1 and GmRIC2, involved in autoregulation of nodulation, were upregulated in plants inoculated with the mutant under the N-free condition. In addition, when plants were inoculated in the presence of 10 mM NH4NO3, the mutant produced nodules containing bacteroids, and GmRIC1 and GmRIC2 were downregulated. The rsh mutant released more auxin to the culture supernatant than the wild type, which might in part explain its symbiotic behavior in the presence of combined N. These results indicate that the B. diazoefficiens stringent response integrates into the plant defense suppression and regulation of nodulation circuits in soybean, perhaps mediated by the type 3 secretion system.IMPORTANCE The symbiotic N2 fixation carried out between prokaryotic rhizobia and legume plants performs a substantial contribution to the N cycle in the biosphere. This symbiotic association is initiated when rhizobia infect and penetrate the root hairs, which is followed by the growth and development of root nodules, within which the infective rhizobia are established and protected. Thus, the nodule environment allows the expression and function of the enzyme complex that catalyzes N2 fixation. However, during early infection, the rhizobia find a harsh environment while penetrating the root hairs. To cope with this nuisance, the rhizobia mount a stress response known as the stringent response. In turn, the plant regulates nodulation in response to the presence of alternative sources of combined N in the surrounding medium. Control of these processes is crucial for a successful symbiosis, and here we show how the rhizobial stringent response may modulate plant defense suppression and the networks of regulation of nodulation.

Soybean-Nodulating Strains With Low Intrinsic Competitiveness for Nodulation, Good Symbiotic Performance, and Stress-Tolerance Isolated From Soybean-Cropped Soils in Argentina

Soybean is the most important oilseed in the world, cropped in 120–130 million hectares each year. The three most important soybean producers are Argentina, Brazil, and United States, where soybean crops are routinely inoculated with symbiotic N₂-fixing Bradyrhizobium spp. This extended inoculation gave rise to soybean-nodulating allochthonous populations (SNAPs) that compete against new inoculant for nodulation, thus impairing yield responses. Competitiveness depends on intrinsic factors contributed by genotype, extrinsic ones determined by growth and environmental conditions, and strain persistence in the soil. To assess these factors in Argentinean SNAPs, we studied 58 isolates from five sites of the main soybean cropping area. BOX-A1R DNA fingerprint distributed these isolates in 10 clades that paralleled the pHs of their original soils. By contrast, reference Bradyrhizobium spp. strains, including those used as soybean-inoculants, were confined to a single clade. More detailed characterization of a subset of 11 SNAP-isolates revealed that five were Bradyrhizobium japonicum, two Bradyrhizobium elkanii, two Rhizobium radiobacter (formerly Agrobacterium tumefaciens), one Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens, and one Paenibacillus glycanilyticus-which did not nodulate when inoculated alone, and therefore was excluded from further characterization. The remaining subset of 10 SNAP-isolates was used for deeper characterization. All SNAP-isolates were aluminum- and heat-tolerant, and most of them were glyphosate-tolerant. Meanwhile, inoculant strains tested were sensitive to aluminum and glyphosate. In addition, all SNAP-isolates were motile to different degrees. Only three SNAP-isolates were deficient for N₂-fixation, and none was intrinsically more competitive than the inoculant strain. These results are in contrast to the general belief that rhizobia from soil populations evolved as intrinsically more competitive for nodulation and less N₂-fixing effective than inoculants strains. Shoot:root ratios, both as dry biomass and as total N, were highly correlated with leaf ureide contents, and therefore may be easy indicators of N₂-fixing performance, suggesting that highly effective N₂-fixing and well-adapted strains may be readily selected from SNAPs. In addition, intrinsic competitiveness of the inoculants strains seems already optimized against SNAP strains, and therefore our efforts to improve nodules occupation by inoculated strains should focus on the optimization of extrinsic competitiveness factors, such as inoculant formulation and inoculation technology.

Induction by Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens of Different Pathways for Growth in D-mannitol or L-arabinose Leading to Pronounced Differences in CO2 Fixation, O2 Consumption, and Lateral-Flagellum Production

Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens, a soybean N₂-fixing symbiont, constitutes the basic input in one of the most prominent inoculant industries worldwide. This bacterium may be cultured with D-mannitol or L-arabinose as carbon-plus-energy source (C-source) with similar specific growth rates, but with higher biomass production with D-mannitol. To better understand the bacterium’s carbon metabolism, we analyzed, by liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (MS), the whole set of proteins obtained from cells grown on each C-source. Among 3,334 proteins identified, 266 were overproduced in D-mannitol and 237 in L-arabinose, but among these, only 22% from D-mannitol cultures and 35% from L-arabinose cultures were annotated with well defined functions. In the D-mannitol-differential pool we found 19 enzymes of the pentose-phosphate and Calvin–Benson–Bassham pathways and accordingly observed increased extracellular-polysaccharide production by D-mannitol grown bacteria in a CO₂-enriched atmosphere. Moreover, poly-3-hydroxybutyrate biosynthesis was increased, suggesting a surplus of reducing power. In contrast, the L-arabinose-differential pool contained 11 enzymes of the L-2-keto-3-deoxyarabonate pathway, 4 enzymes for the synthesis of nicotinamide-adenine dinucleotide from aspartate, with those cultures having a threefold higher O₂-consumption rate than the D-mannitol cultures. The stoichiometric balances deduced from the modeled pathways, however, resulted in similar O₂ consumptions and ATP productions per C-mole of substrate. These results suggested higher maintenance-energy demands in L-arabinose, which energy may be used partly for flagella-driven motility. Since B. diazoefficiens produces the lateral-flagella system in only L-arabinose, we calculated the O₂-consumption rates of a lafR::Km mutant devoid of lateral flagella cultured in L-arabinose or D-mannitol. Contrary to that of the wild-type, the O₂-consumption rate of this mutant was similar on both C-sources, and accordingly outcompeted the wild-type in coculture, suggesting that the lateral flagella behaved as parasitic structures under these conditions. Proteomic data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD008263.

Symbiotic performance and induction of systemic resistance against Cercospora sojina in soybean plants co-inoculated with Bacillus sp. CHEP5 and Bradyrhizobium japonicum E109

Soybean is an economically very important crop throughout the word and particularly in Argentina. Soybean yield may be affected by many factors such as the lack of some essential nutrients or pathogens attack. In this work we demonstrated that the co-inoculation of the native biocontrol bacterium Bacillus sp. CHEP5 which induces resistance against Cercospora sojina in soybean and the nitrogen fixing strain Bradyrhizobium japonicum E109, was more effective in reducing frog leaf spot severity than the inoculation of the biocontrol agent alone. Probably, this is related with the increase in the ability to form biofilm when both bacteria are growing together. Furthermore, Bacillus sp. CHEP5 inoculation did not affect Bradyrhizobium japonicum E109 symbiotic behavior and flavonoids composition of root exudates in pathogen challenged plants. These results suggest that co-inoculation of plants with rhizobia and biocontrol agents could be a strategy to improve soybean production in a sustainable system.

Regulation of Polyhydroxybutyrate Synthesis in the Soil Bacterium Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens

Polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) is a carbon and energy reserve polymer in various prokaryotic species. We determined that, when grown with mannitol as the sole carbon source, Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens produces a homopolymer composed only of 3-hydroxybutyrate units (PHB). Conditions of oxygen limitation (such as microoxia, oxic stationary phase, and bacteroids inside legume nodules) were permissive for the synthesis of PHB, which was observed as cytoplasmic granules. To study the regulation of PHB synthesis, we generated mutations in the regulator gene phaR and the phasin genes phaP1 and phaP4 Under permissive conditions, mutation of phaR impaired PHB accumulation, and a phaP1 phaP4 double mutant produced more PHB than the wild type, which was accumulated in a single, large cytoplasmic granule. Moreover, PhaR negatively regulated the expression of phaP1 and phaP4 as well as the expression of phaA1 and phaA2 (encoding a 3-ketoacyl coenzyme A [CoA] thiolases), phaC1 and phaC2 (encoding PHB synthases), and fixK2 (encoding a cyclic AMP receptor protein [CRP]/fumarate and nitrate reductase regulator [FNR]-type transcription factor of genes for microoxic lifestyle). In addition to the depressed PHB cycling, phaR mutants accumulated more extracellular polysaccharides and promoted higher plant shoot dry weight and competitiveness for nodulation than the wild type, in contrast to the phaC1 mutant strain, which is defective in PHB synthesis. These results suggest that phaR not only regulates PHB granule formation by controlling the expression of phasins and biosynthetic enzymes but also acts as a global regulator of excess carbon allocation and symbiosis by controlling fixK2 IMPORTANCE: In this work, we investigated the regulation of polyhydroxybutyrate synthesis in the soybean-nodulating bacterium Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens and its influence in bacterial free-living and symbiotic lifestyles. We uncovered a new interplay between the synthesis of this carbon reserve polymer and the network responsible for microoxic metabolism through the interaction between the gene regulators phaR and fixK2 These results contribute to the understanding of the physiological conditions required for polyhydroxybutyrate biosynthesis. The interaction between these two main metabolic pathways is also reflected in the symbiotic phenotypes of soybeans inoculated with phaR mutants, which were more competitive for nodulation and enhanced dry matter production by the plants. Therefore, this knowledge may be applied to the development of superior strains to be used as improved inoculants for soybean crops.

[Queries related to the technology of soybean seed inoculation with Bradyrhizobium spp]

With the aim of exploiting symbiotic nitrogen fixation, soybean crops are inoculated with selected strains of Bradyrhizobium japonicum, Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens or Bradyrhizobium elkanii (collectively referred to as Bradyrhizobium spp.). The most common method of inoculation used is seed inoculation, whether performed immediately before sowing or using preinoculated seeds or pretreated seeds by the professional seed treatment. The methodology of inoculation should not only cover the seeds with living rhizobia, but must also optimize the chances of these rhizobia to infect the roots and nodulate. To this end, inoculated rhizobia must be in such an amount and condition that would allow them to overcome the competition exerted by the rhizobia of the allochthonous population of the soil, which are usually less effective for nitrogen fixation and thus dilute the effect of inoculation on yield. This optimization requires solving some queries related to the current knowledge of seed inoculation, which are addressed in this article. I conclude that the aspects that require further research are the adhesion and survival of rhizobia on seeds, the release of rhizobia once the seeds are deposited in the soil, and the movement of rhizobia from the vicinity of the seeds to the infection sites in the roots.

Alteration of the exopolysaccharide production and the transcriptional profile of free-living Frankia strain CcI3 under nitrogen-fixing conditions

We investigated the effect of different nitrogen (N) sources on exopolysaccharide (EPS) production and composition by Frankia strain CcI3, a N2-fixing actinomycete that forms root nodules with Casuarina species. Frankia cells grown in the absence of NH4Cl (i.e., under N2-fixing conditions) produced 1.7-fold more EPS, with lower galactose (45.1 vs. 54.7 mol%) and higher mannose (17.3 vs. 9.7 mol%) contents than those grown in the presence of NH4Cl as a combined N-source. In the absence of the combined N-source, terminally linked and branched residue contents were nearly twice as high with 32.8 vs. 15.1 mol% and 15.1 vs. 8.7 mol%, respectively, than in its presence, while the content of linearly linked residues was lower with 52.1 mol% compared to 76.2 mol%. To find out clues for the altered EPS production at the transcriptional level, we performed whole-gene expression profiling using quantitative reverse transcription PCR and microarray technology. The transcription profiles of Frankia strain CcI3 grown in the absence of NH4Cl revealed up to 2 orders of magnitude higher transcription of nitrogen fixation-related genes compared to those of CcI3 cells grown in the presence of NH4Cl. Unexpectedly, microarray data did not provide evidence for transcriptional regulation as a mechanism for differences in EPS production. These findings indicate effects of nitrogen fixation on the production and composition of EPS in Frankia strain CcI3 and suggest posttranscriptional regulation of enhanced EPS production in the absence of the combined N-source.

Swarming motility in Bradyrhizobium japonicum

Flagellar-driven bacterial motility is an important trait for colonization of natural environments. Bradyrhizobium japonicum is a soil species that possesses two different flagellar systems: one subpolar and the other lateral, each with a filament formed by a different set of flagellins. While synthesis of subpolar flagellins is constitutive, translation of lateral flagellins was detected in rhizobia grown with l-arabinose, but not with d-mannitol as sole carbon source, independently of whether bacteria were in liquid or semisolid medium. We characterized swarming of B. japonicum in semisolid medium and found that this motility was faster with l-arabinose than with d-mannitol. By using mutants with deletions in each flagellin set, we evaluated the contribution of each flagellum system to swarming in semisolid culture media, and in soil. Mutants devoid of either of the flagella were affected in swarming in culture media, with this impairment being stronger for mutants without lateral flagella. In sterile soil at 100% or 80% field capacity, flagellar-driven motility of mutants able to swim but impaired in swarming was similar to wild type, indicating that swimming was the predominant movement here.

Analysis of the role of the two flagella of Bradyrhizobium japonicum in competition for nodulation of soybean

Bradyrhizobium japonicum has two types of flagella. One has thin filaments consisting of the 33-kDa flagellins FliCI and FliCII (FliCI-II) and the other has thick filaments consisting of the 65-kDa flagellins FliC1, FliC2, FliC3, and FliC4 (FliC1-4). To investigate the roles of each flagellum in competition for nodulation, we obtained mutants deleted in fliCI-II and/or fliC1-4 in the genomic backgrounds of two derivatives from the reference strain USDA 110: the streptomycin-resistant derivative LP 3004 and its more motile derivative LP 3008. All mutations diminished swimming motility. When each mutant was co-inoculated with the parental strain on soybean plants cultivated in vermiculite either at field capacity or flooded, their competitiveness differed according to the flagellin altered. ΔfliCI-II mutants were more competitive, occupying 64-80% of the nodules, while ΔfliC1-4 mutants occupied 45-49% of the nodules. Occupation by the nonmotile double mutant decreased from 55% to 11% as the water content of the vermiculite increased from 85% to 95% field capacity to flooding. These results indicate that the influence of motility on competitiveness depended on the water status of the rooting substrate.

Soybean Lectin Enhances Biofilm Formation by Bradyrhizobium japonicum in the Absence of Plants

Soybean lectin (SBL) purified from soybean seeds by affinity chromatography strongly bound to Bradyrhizobium japonicum USDA 110 cell surface. This lectin enhanced biofilm formation by B. japonicum in a concentration-dependent manner. Presence of galactose during biofilm formation had different effects in the presence or absence of SBL. Biofilms were completely inhibited in the presence of both SBL and galactose, while in the absence of SBL, galactose was less inhibitory. SBL was very stable, since its agglutinating activity of B. japonicum cells as well as of human group A+ erythrocytes was resistant to preincubation for one week at 60°C. Hence, we propose that plant remnants might constitute a source of this lectin, which might remain active in soil and thus favor B. japonicum biofilm formation in the interval between soybean crop seasons.

Gac two-component system in Pseudomonas syringae pv. tabaci is required for virulence but not for hypersensitive reaction

Pseudomonas syringae pv. tabaci 6605 causes wildfire disease on host tobacco plants. To investigate the regulatory mechanism of the expression of virulence, Gac two-component system-defective mutants, DeltagacA and DeltagacS, and a double mutant, DeltagacADeltagacS, were generated. These mutants produced smaller amounts of N-acyl homoserine lactones required for quorum sensing, had lost swarming motility, and had reduced expression of virulence-related hrp genes and the algT gene required for exopolysaccharide production. The ability of the mutants to cause disease symptoms in their host tobacco plant was remarkably reduced, while they retained the ability to induce hypersensitive reaction (HR) in the nonhost plants. These results indicated that the Gac two-component system of P. syringae pv. tabaci 6605 is indispensable for virulence on the host plant, but not for HR induction in the nonhost plants.

Effects of N-starvation and C-source on Bradyrhizobium japonicum exopolysaccharide production and composition, and bacterial infectivity to soybean roots

The exopolysaccharide (EPS) is an extracellular molecule that in Bradyrhizobium japonicum affects bacterial efficiency to nodulate soybean. Culture conditions such as N availability, type of C-source, or culture age can modify the amount and composition of EPS. To better understand the relationship among these conditions for EPS production, we analyzed their influence on EPS in B. japonicum USDA 110 and its derived mutant DeltaP22. This mutant has a deletion including the 3' region of exoP, exoT, and the 5' region of exoB, and produces a shorter EPS devoid of galactose. The studies were carried out in minimal media with the N-source at starving or sufficient levels, and mannitol or malate as the only C-source. Under N-starvation there was a net EPS accumulation, the levels being similar in the wild type and the mutant with malate as the C-source. By contrast, the amount of EPS diminished in N-sufficient conditions, being poyhydroxybutyrate accumulated with culture age. Hexoses composition was the same in both N-situations, either with mannitol or malate as the only C-source, in contrast to previous observations made with different strains. This result suggests that the change in EPS composition in response to the environment is not general in B. japonicum. The wild type EPS composition was 1 glucose:0.5 galactose:0.5 galacturonic acid:0.17 mannose. In DeltaP22 the EPS had no galactose but had galacturonic acid, thus indicating that it was not produced from oxidation of UDP-galactose. Infectivity was lower in DeltaP22 than in USDA 110. When the mutant infectivity was compared between N-starved or N-sufficient cultures, the N-starved were not less infective, despite the fact that the amounts of altered EPS produced by this mutant under N-starvation were higher than in N-sufficiency. Since this altered EPS does not bind soybean lectin, the interaction of EPS with this protein was not involved in increasing DeltaP22 infectivity under N-starvation.

Effect of organic N source on bacterial growth, lipo-chitooligosaccharide production, and early soybean nodulation by Bradyrhizobium japonicum

Production of Bradyrhizobium japonicum inoculants is problematic because high inoculation rates are necessary but expensive, while production of rhizobial Nod factors (lipo-chitooligosaccharides (LCOs)), key signal molecules in the establishment of legume-rhizobia symbioses, may be inhibited at high culture cell densities. We conducted experiments to determine the effects of growth medium N source on B. japonicum growth, LCO production, and early nodulation of soybean. We found that 1.57 mmol ammonium nitrate x L(-1) resulted in less rhizobial growth and rhizobial capacity to produce LCOs (on a per cell basis) than did 0.4 g yeast extract x L(-1), which contained the same amount of N as the ammonium nitrate. Increasing yeast extract to 0.8 g x L(-1) increased rhizobial growth and LCO production on a volume basis (per litre of culture) and did not affect cell capacity to produce LCOs; however, at 1.4 g yeast extract x L(-1) per cell, production was reduced. A mixture of 0.8 g yeast extract x L(-1) and 1.6 g casein hydrolysate x L(-1) resulted in the greatest bacterial growth and LCO production on a volume basis but reduced LCO production per cell. Changes in organic N level and source increased production of some of the measured LCOs more than others. LCO production was positively correlated with cell density when expressed on a volume basis; however, it was negatively correlated on a per cell basis. We conclude that although quorum sensing affected Nod factor production, increased levels of organic N, and specific compositions of organic N, increased LCO production on a volume basis. Greenhouse inoculation experiments showed that the medium did not modify nodule number and N fixation in soybean, suggesting that it could have utility in inoculant production.

Structural characterization of extracellular polysaccharides of Azorhizobium caulinodans and importance for nodule initiation on Sesbania rostrata

During lateral root base nodulation, the microsymbiont Azorhizobium caulinodans enters its host plant, Sesbania rostrata, via the formation of outer cortical infection pockets, a process that is characterized by a massive production of H(2)O(2). Infection threads guide bacteria from infection pockets towards nodule primordia. Previously, two mutants were constructed that produce lipopolysaccharides (LPSs) similar to one another but different from the wild-type LPS, and that are affected in extracellular polysaccharide (EPS) production. Mutant ORS571-X15 was blocked at the infection pocket stage and unable to produce EPS. The other mutant, ORS571-oac2, was impaired in the release from infection threads and was surrounded by a thin layer of EPS in comparison to the wild-type strain that produced massive amounts of EPS. Structural characterization revealed that EPS purified from cultured and nodule bacteria was a linear homopolysaccharide of alpha-1,3-linked 4,6-O-(1-carboxyethylidene)-D-galactosyl residues. In situ H(2)O(2) localization demonstrated that increased EPS production during early stages of invasion prevented the incorporation of H(2)O(2) inside the bacteria, suggesting a role for EPS in protecting the microsymbiont against H(2)O(2). In addition, ex planta assays confirmed a positive correlation between increased EPS production and enhanced protection against H(2)O(2).

Rhizobial position as a main determinant in the problem of competition for nodulation in soybean

Selected Bradyrhizobium japonicum strains inoculated on soybean seeds often fail to occupy a significant proportion of nodules when a competitor rhizobial population is established in the soil. This competition problem could result from a genetic/ physiological advantage of the adapted soil population over the introduced inoculant or from a positional advantage, as the soil population already occupies the soil profile where the roots will penetrate, whereas the inoculant remains concentrated around the seeds. Here, we have assessed the contribution of these factors with a laboratory model in which a rhizobial population is established in sterile vermiculite. We observed that the wild-type strain B. japonicum LP 3004 was able to grow in pots with N-free plant nutrient solution-watered vermiculite for six or seven generations with a duplication rate of at least 0.7 day(-1). In addition, the rhizobial population persisted for 3 months with 10(6)-10(7) colony-forming units ml(-1) of the vermiculite-retained solution. N-starved, young rhizobial cultures are more efficient in performing several steps along their early association with soybean roots. However, N starvation during growth of rhizobia used for seed inoculation did not enhance their competitiveness against a 1 month vermiculite-established rhizobial population, which occupied more than 72% of the nodules. When a similarly established rhizobial population was recovered from the vermiculite and homogeneously suspended in plant nutrient solution, these cells were significantly less competitive (29% of nodules occupied) than rhizobia obtained from a fresh, logarithmic culture in a N-poor minimal medium, thus indicating that cell position rather than intrinsic competitiveness was the determinant for nodule occupation.