Sustainable effect of a symbiotic nitrogen-fixing bacterium Sinorhizobium meliloti on nodulation and photosynthetic traits of four leguminous plants under low moisture stress environment

Sustainable effect of a nitrogen-fixing bacterium Sinorhizobium meliloti on nodulation and photosynthetic traits (phenomenological fluxes) in four leguminous plants species under low moisture stress (20-25% soil moisture content) environment was studied. Sinorhizobium meliloti was isolated from fenugreek (Trigonella foenum-graecum) root nodules, and later, it was cultured and purified. Nodulation and photosynthetic ability in the presence of S. meliloti were tested in four leguminous plant species, that is, kidney bean (cv. lobia-2000), black bean (cv. NM-97), mung bean (cv. NM-2006) and chickpea (cv. Pb-2008). Plants of each species were grown in sterilized soil that was previously treated with 25 ml suspension containing S. meliloti at 41 x 10(6) CFU ml(-1) kg(-1) pot. One-month-old plants were subjected to low soil moisture stress conditions for 15 days, and soil moisture contents were maintained to 20-25% throughout the experimental period. The ability to fix nitrogen, nodule formation, and their subsequent effect on phenomenological fluxes in low moisture treated legumes were studied.

Automated summary

This study investigated the sustainable effect of Sinorhizobium meliloti, a nitrogen-fixing bacterium, on nodulation and photosynthetic traits in four leguminous plant species under low moisture stress conditions. The experiment involved isolating and culturing Sinorhizobium meliloti from fenugreek root nodules, testing its effects on kidney bean, black bean, mung bean, and chickpea plants, and subjecting them to low soil moisture stress while studying nitrogen fixation, nodule formation, and phenomenological fluxes.