The soil bacteria, Sinorhizobium meliloti, attach to the roots of leguminous plants and reduce nitrogen gas to ammonia in a process called nitrogen fixation. The plants then use this ammonia to grow and so farmers often fertilize their crops with large quantities of nitrogen fertilizer to improve yields. However, excess fertilizer causes environmental problems once it contaminates fresh water sources. Since leguminous plants are of great importance to Canadian agriculture, the study of nitrogen fixation will lead to ways to alleviate these environmental problems and reduce costs to farmers. While the genome for Sinorhizobium meliloti has been sequenced, the function of many of the bacterium’s genes is unknown. This project focuses on these genes to determine their function and importance to the survival of the bacterium. Beyond the benefits for agriculture, this research also contributes to our understanding of soil borne plant and animal diseases by allowing comparisons among the soil microorganisms.
Led by researchers from McMaster University, the team involves researchers at both McMaster and University and Waterloo, and also benefits from associations with scientists at the University of Calgary, University of Manitoba, McGill University and at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Quebec.