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Endophytic Expression of nif Genes of Azoarcus sp. Strain BH72 in Rice Roots

September 1999 , Volume 12 , Number  9
Pages  813 - 819

Tanja Egener , Thomas Hurek , and Barbara Reinhold-Hurek

Max-Planck-Institut für terrestrische Mikrobiologie, Arbeitsgruppe Symbioseforschung, Karl-von-Frisch-Str., D-35043 Marburg, Germany


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Accepted 30 April 1999.

Transcriptional fusions of gusA and gfp to the nifH gene as well as immunogold labeling with antibodies against the iron protein of nitrogenase revealed high nitrogenase gene expression levels of the endophyte Azoarcus sp. strain BH72 inside infected rice roots (Oryza sativa) in the laboratory. Thus, environmental conditions inside rice roots are permissive for endophytic nitrogen fixation in bacterial microcolonies in the aerenchyma.


Additional keywords: ammonium, oxygen tolerance, repression.

© 1999 The American Phytopathological Society