RESEARCH ARTICLE
Effect of Co-Inoculation with Mycorrhiza and Rhizobia on the Nodule Trehalose Content of Different Bean Genotypes
L Ballesteros-Almanza 1, J Altamirano-Hernandez 1, J.J Peña-Cabriales 3, G Santoyo 1, J.M Sanchez-Yañez 1, E Valencia-Cantero 1, L Macias-Rodriguez 1, J Lopez-Bucio 1, R Cardenas-Navarro 2, R Farias-Rodriguez 1, *
Article Information
Identifiers and Pagination:
Year: 2010Volume: 4
First Page: 83
Last Page: 92
Publisher ID: TOMICROJ-4-83
DOI: 10.2174/1874285801004010083
Article History:
Received Date: 31/5/2010Revision Received Date: 17/6/2010
Acceptance Date: 25/6/2010
Electronic publication date: 17/8/2010
Collection year: 2010

open-access license: This is an open access article licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/) which permits unrestricted, non-commercial use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the work is properly cited.
Abstract
Studies on Rhizobium-legume symbiosis show that trehalose content in nodules under drought stress correlates positively with an increase in plant tolerance to this stress. Fewer reports describe trehalose accumulation in mycorrhiza where, in contrast with rhizobia, there is no flux of carbohydrates from the microsymbiont to the plant. However, the trehalose dynamics in the Mycorrhiza-Rhizobium-Legume tripartite symbiosis is unknown. The present study explores the role of this tripartite symbiosis in the trehalose content of nodules grown under contrasting moisture conditions. Three wild genotypes (P. filiformis, P. acutifolis and P. vulgaris) and two commercial genotypes of Phaseolus vulgaris (Pinto villa and Flor de Mayo) were used. Co-inoculation treatments were conducted with Glomus intraradices and a mixture of seven native rhizobial strains, and trehalose content was determined by GC/MS. The results showed a negative effect of mycorrhizal inoculation on nodule development, as mycorrhized plants showed fewer nodules and lower nodule dry weight compared to plants inoculated only with Rhizobium. Mycorrhizal colonization was also higher in plants inoculated only with Glomus as compared to plants co-inoculated with both microsymbionts. In regard to trehalose, co-inoculation negatively affects its accumulation in the nodules of each genotype tested. However, the correlation analysis showed a significantly positive correlation between mycorrhizal colonization and nodule trehalose content.