March
2012
, Volume
25
, Number
3
Pages
321
-
330
Authors
Peter van Berkum,1
Patrick Elia,1
Qijian Song,1 and
Bertrand D. Eardly2
Affiliations
1Soybean Genomics and Improvement Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD 20705, U.S.A., and 2Penn State Berks College, Berks Campus, P.O. Box 7009 Reading, PA 19610, U.S.A.
Go to article:
RelatedArticle
Accepted 1 November 2011.
Abstract
A multilocus sequence typing (MLST) method based on allelic variation of seven chromosomal loci was developed for characterizing genotypes (GT) within the genus Bradyrhizobium. With the method, 29 distinct multilocus GT were identified among 190 culture collection soybean strains. The occupancy of 347 nodules taken from uninoculated field-grown soybean plants also was determined. The bacteroid GT were either the same as or were closely related to GT identified among strains in the culture collection. Double-nodule occupancy estimates of 2.9% were much lower than values published based on serology. Of the 347 nodules examined, 337 and 10 were occupied by Bradyrhizobium japonicum and B. elkanii, respectively. The collection strains within the species B. japonicum and B. elkaniialso were compared with Bradyrhizobium cultures from other legumes. In many cases, the observed GT varied more according to their geographic origin than by their trap hosts of isolation. In other cases, there were no apparent relationships with either the legume or geographic source. The MLST method that was developed should be a useful tool in determining the influence of geographic location, temperature, season, soil type, and host plant cultivar on the distribution of GT of Bradyrhizobium spp.
JnArticleKeywords
Page Content
ArticleCopyright
This article is in the public domain and not copyrightable. It may be freely reprinted with customary crediting of the source. The American Phytopathological Society, 2012.