Transfer of nitrogen fixing ability to plants: Model experiments in cyanobacteria

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15H04387
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Plant molecular biology/Plant physiology
• Research Institution: Nagoya University
• Principal Investigator: FUJITA Yuichi 名古屋大学, 生命農学研究科, 教授 (80222264)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): SUGITA Mamoru 名古屋大学, 遺伝子実験施設, 教授 (70154474)
• Research Collaborator: YAMAKAWA Hisanori ; TSUJIMOTO Ryoma ; IHARA Kunio ; UESAKA Kazuma ; KOTANI Hiroya ; TOMATSU Chie ; YOKOMIZO Konomi ; YAMAMOTO Haruki
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: 窒素固定 / ニトロゲナーゼ / シアノバクテリア / トランスポゾンタギング / 光合成 / 合成生物学

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We established transposon-tagging mutagenesis in the nonheterocystous cyanobacterium Leptolyngbya boryana. Using this technique, we identified one gene that is involved in mechanism for coexisting nitrogenase and photosynthesis. To identify a gene set for transfer of nitrogen fixing ability to plants we isolated transformants in which the 20-kb nif gene cluster from L. boryana was integrated into a genome neutral site of the cyanobacterium Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. To activate the expression of the nif genes the cnfR gene encoding the transcriptional activator for the nif genes was also integrated into another genome neutral site. A low but significant activity of nitrogenase was successfully detected in the transformants. This is the first example for functional expression of nitrogenase in oxygenic photosynthetic organisms.

Free Research Field

植物生化学