[Nitrogenase activity of Rhizobium meliloti and Rhizobium vigna in a root tisse culture of leguminous and nonleguminous plants]

Abstract

As was shown using the acetylene technique, the nitrogenase activity of Rhizobium meliloti and Rhizobium vigna increased when they were cultivated with the root tissue cultures of legumes (lucerne, sweetclover) and non-legumes (tobacco, glasswort, carrot), particularly in the case of the former. The maximum activity of nitrogenase was found in R. meliloti. The tissue cultures of legumes had no effect on the growth of Rhizobium whereas the tissues of non-legumes stimulated their biomass accumulation though the activity of nitrogenase in both Rhizobium cultures was low in this case. Therefore, the metabolites of legumes produced a specific action on the nitrogenase of nodule bacteria.