Novel Genes and Regulators That Influence Production of Cell Surface Exopolysaccharides in Sinorhizobium meliloti.

ABSTRACT: Sinorhizobium meliloti is a soil-dwelling alphaproteobacterium that engages in a nitrogen-fixing root nodule symbiosis with leguminous plants. Cell surface polysaccharides are important both for adapting to stresses in the soil and for the development of an effective symbiotic interaction. Among the polysaccharides characterized to date, the acidic exopolysaccharides I (EPS-I; succinoglycan) and II (EPS-II; galactoglucan) are particularly important for protection from abiotic stresses, biofilm formation, root colonization, and infection of plant roots. Previous genetic screens discovered mutants with impaired EPS production, allowing the delineation of EPS biosynthetic pathways. Here we report on a genetic screen to isolate mutants with mucoid colonial morphologies that suggest EPS

SUBMITTER: Barnett MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5763050 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature