A novel intracellular nitrogen-fixing symbiosis made by Ustilago maydis and Bacillus spp

The New Phytologist
José Ruiz-HerreraJuan José Peña-Cabriales

Abstract

We observed that the maize pathogenic fungus Ustilago maydis grew in nitrogen (N)-free media at a rate similar to that observed in media containing ammonium nitrate, suggesting that it was able to fix atmospheric N2 . Because only prokaryotic organisms have the capacity to reduce N2 , we entertained the possibility that U. maydis was associated with an intracellular bacterium. The presence of nitrogenase in the fungus was analyzed by acetylene reduction, and capacity to fix N2 by use of (15) N2 . Presence of an intracellular N2 -fixing bacterium was analyzed by PCR amplification of bacterial 16S rRNA and nifH genes, and by microscopic observations. Nitrogenase activity and (15) N incorporation into the cells proved that U. maydis fixed N2 . Light and electron microscopy, and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) experiments revealed the presence of intracellular bacteria related to Bacillus pumilus, as evidenced by sequencing of the PCR-amplified fragments. These observations reveal for the first time the existence of an endosymbiotic N2 -fixing association involving a fungus and a bacterium.

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Citations

Mar 16, 2017·Environmental Microbiology·Laila P Partida-Martínez
Apr 22, 2017·Journal of Basic Microbiology·José Alejandro Sánchez-ArreguinJosé Ruiz-Herrera
Mar 29, 2018·Microbiome·M Amine HassaniStéphane Hacquard
Feb 23, 2018·FEMS Microbiology Reviews·Aurélie DeveauLukas Y Wick
Jan 8, 2019·DNA Research : an International Journal for Rapid Publication of Reports on Genes and Genomes·Diya SenSucheta Tripathy
Jan 10, 2020·International Microbiology : the Official Journal of the Spanish Society for Microbiology·José Ruiz-HerreraJohn Velez-Haro
Mar 30, 2017·Microbial Genomics·David A BaltrusA Elizabeth Arnold
Jun 12, 2019·FEMS Microbiology Letters·Cinthia V Soberanes-GutiérrezJosé Ruiz-Herrera
Dec 29, 2020·Plant Signaling & Behavior·Fernando Pérez-RodríguezJosé Ruiz-Herrera

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