The basidiomycete Ustilago maydis is the causal agent of corn smut disease and induces tumor formation during biotrophic growth in its host maize (Zea mays). We have conducted a combined metabolome and transcriptome survey of infected leaves between 1 d post infection (dpi) and 8 dpi, representing infected leaf primordia and fully developed tumors, respectively. At 4 and 8 dpi, we observed a su...

The capacity for nitrate reduction, as measured by nitrate reductase activity (NRA), was generally low for a range of plant communities in Australia (coastal heathland, rainforest, savanna woodland, monsoon forest, mangrove, open Eucalyptus forest, coral cay open forest) and only a loose relationship existed between NRA and leaf nitrogen concentration. This suggests that nitrate ions are not th...

Nitrogen fixed by legumes is the main nitrogen source in organic farming systems. The design of crop rotation is strongly depending on the knowledge of how much nitrogen is fixed by legumes. Also for farm scale budgeting of Nitrogen it is essential to know the amount of Nitrogen fixed by the single leguminous crop. According to the literature, the determination of Nitrogen fixation is expensive...

Putrescine as the sole carbon source requires a novel catabolic pathway with glutamylated intermediates. Nitrogen limitation does not induce genes of this glutamylated putrescine (GP) pathway but instead induces genes for a putrescine catabolic pathway that starts with a transaminase-dependent deamination. We determined pathway utilization with putrescine as the sole nitrogen source by examinin...

The growth characteristics of five octopine-catabolizing pseudomonads have been determined in batch and continuous cultures. All five strains belonged to rRNA homology group I and showed a more psychrotrophic growth pattern than did Agrobacterium tumefaciens B6 and ATCC 15955. In chemostats limited by octopine, either as the source of carbon and nitrogen or the sole source of nitrogen, maximum ...

M icroorganisms such as Escherichia coli live in environments subject to rapid changes in the availability of the carbon and nitrogen compounds necessary to provide energy and building blocks for the synthesis of cell material. Their survival depends on their ability to regulate the expression of genes coding for the enzymes and transport proteins required for growth in the altered environment....