How plants interact with beneficial microbes in the soil

(University of Massachusetts at Amherst) A team of molecular biologists led by Dong Wang at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, working with the alfalfa-clover Medicago truncatula, has found how a gene in the host plant encodes a protein that recognizes the cell membrane surrounding the symbiotic bacteria, then directs other proteins to harvest the nutrients. Details appear online in the January edition of Nature Plants.
Source: EurekAlert! - Biology - Category: Biology Source Type: news