Artificial colonization of non-symbiotic plants roots with the use of lectins

Abstract

Rhizobia have the ability to increase growth of non-legume plants due to the production of phytohormones and protection of plant from diseases and pathogens. However, the practical use of these beneficial bacteria sometimes fails because of their inability to effectively colonize rhizoplane and rhizosphere of inoculated plants. We chose the legume lectins as a factor that allows plants to form associative symbiosis with rhizobia. To test the fact that transgenic tobacco, tomato and rape roots with pea lectin gene may affect specific interaction with rhizobia, transgenic roots have been artificially inoculated by fluorescently-labeled pea rhizobia R. leguminosarum and east galega rhizobia Rhizobium galega. Microscopic and microbiological tests have shown that the number of adhered R. leguminosarum onto tobacco, rape and tomato roots which transformed with pea lectin gene is higher in comparison with the control, but no such effect through inoculation of these plants with R. galegae has been found. This confirms the interaction of R. leguminosarum with pea lectin at the surface of transformed roots. Undoubtedly, the improvement of recognition and attachment processes by using lectins can lead to the achievement of a stable associative relationship between non-symbiotic plants and rhizobia.