Nitrogen fixation

About: Nitrogen fixation is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 7940 publications have been published within this topic receiving 232921 citations. The topic is also known as: GO:0009399.

Seasonal Patterns of Growth and Nitrogen Fixation in Field-Grown Pea

Abstract: The seasonal patterns of growth and symbiotic N2 fixation under field conditions were studied by growth analysis and use of15N-labelled fertilizer in a determinate pea cultivar (Pisum sativum L.) grown for harvest at the dry seed stage.

Species-driven changes in nitrogen cycling can provide a mechanism for plant invasions

Abstract: Traits that permit successful invasions have often seemed idiosyncratic, and the key biological traits identified vary widely among species. This fundamentally limits our ability to determine the invasion potential of a species. However, ultimately, successful invaders must have positive growth rates that longer term result in higher biomass accumulation than competing established species. In many terrestrial ecosystems nitrogen limits plant growth, and is a key factor determining productivity and the outcome of competition among species. Plant nitrogen use may provide a powerful framework to evaluate the invasive potential of a species in nitrogen-limiting ecosystems. Six mechanisms influence plant nitrogen use or acquisition: photosynthetic tissue allocation, photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency, nitrogen fixation, nitrogen-leaching losses, gross nitrogen mineralization, and plant nitrogen residence time. Here we show that among these alternatives, the key mechanism allowing invasion for Pinus strobus into nitrogen limited grasslands was its higher nitrogen residence time. This higher nitrogen residence time created a positive feedback that redistributed nitrogen from the soil into the plant. This positive feedback allowed P. strobus to accumulate twice as much nitrogen in its tissues and four times as much nitrogen to photosynthetic tissues, as compared with other plant species. In turn, this larger leaf nitrogen pool increased total plant carbon gain of P. strobus two- to sevenfold as compared with other plant species. Thus our data illustrate that plant species can change internal ecosystem nitrogen cycling feedbacks and this mechanism can allow them to gain a competitive advantage over other plant species.

Hydrogen Reactions of Nodulated Leguminous Plants: II. Effects on Dry Matter Accumulation and Nitrogen Fixation.

Abstract: The interaction between the ATP-dependent evolution of H 2 catalyzed by nitrogenase and the oxidation of H 2 via a hydrogenase has been postulated to influence the efficiency of the N 2 -fixing process in nodulated legumes. A comparative study using soybean ( Glycine max L. Merr.) cv. Anoka inoculated with either Rhizobium japonicum strain USDA 31 or USDA 110 and cowpea ( Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.) cv. Whippoorwill inoculated with Rhizobium strain 176A27 or 176A28 cultured on a N-free medium was conducted to address this question. Nodules from the Anoka cultivar inoculated with USDA 31 evolved H 2 in air and the H 2 produced accounted for about 30% of the energy transferred to the nitrogenase system during the period of active N 2 fixation. In contrast the same soybean cultivar inoculated with USDA 110 produced nodules with an active hydrogenase and consequently did not evolve H 2 in air. A comparison of Anoka soybeans inoculated with the two different strains of R. japonicum showed that mean rates of C 2 H 2 reduction and O 2 consumption and mean mass of nodules taken at four times during vegetative growth were not significantly different. When compared to Anoka inoculated with USDA 31, the same cultivar inoculated with USDA 110 showed increases in total dry matter, per cent nitrogen, and total N 2 fixed of 24, 7, and 31%, respectively. Cowpeas in symbiosis with the hydrogenase-producing strain 176A28 in comparison with the same cultivar inoculated with the H 2 -evolving strain 176A27 produced increases in plant dry weight and total N 2 fixed of 11 and 15%, respectively. This apparent increase in the efficiency of N 2 fixation for nodulated legumes capable of reutilizing the H 2 evolved from nitrogenase is considered and it is concluded that provision of conclusive evidence of the role of the H 2 -recycling process in N 2 -fixing efficiency of legumes will require comparison of Rhizobium strains that are genetically identical with the exception of the presence of hydrogenase.

Effect of urea, blue green algae and Azolla on nitrogen fixation and chlorophyll accumulation in soil under rice

Abstract: Nitrogen fixing potential in terms of acetylene reducing activity (ARA) and biomass accumulation (in terms of chlorophyll) were investigated using surface and below-surface soil cores, collected from rice fields 45 and 90 days after transplanting (DAT). Treatments included different levels of urea (30, 60, 90 and 120 kg N ha−1) in combination with inoculation using blue green algae (BGA) and Azolla biofertilizers. Application of biofertilizers brought about a significant enhancement in chlorophyll accumulation and nitrogenase activity, when measured 45 DAT. Positive effects in below-surface soil cores, on both these parameters as a result of application of biofertilizers further emphasized their contribution to the N economy of rice fields. Plots treated with 30 and 60 kg N ha–1 along with biofertilizers exhibited the highest percentage increase in terms of algal biomass and ARA, both in surface and below-surface soil cores at 45 DAT. A definite need to examine critically the nature and metabolic activities of below-surface microflora is highlighted through our investigation.