Tag: microbes as biocontrol agents and biofertilizers

Blue Green Algae (BGA) is a good alternative source of nitrogen in rice fields to increase the soil fertility. Various BGA like Nostoc, Anabaena, Aulosira Scytonema are used to increase rice production. Out of all these, Aulosira fertilissima are most commonly used in rice fields.

Rhizobium is an important symbiont for legumes but it plays an important role with nonlegumes by producing growth hormones. When wheat is inoculated with Rhizobium, no effects are observed in terms of growth and yield, which indicates that uptake of soil nitrogen is not seen as in legumes.

Heterocyst is a specialized nitrogen=fixing cell found in some filamentous cyanobacteria like Nostoc, Anabaena. It has cell wall which is made up of three layers. It carries carries out nitrogen fixation. It is formed due to lack of fixed nitrogen. It fixes nitrogen under aerobic conditions. It contains nif gens and synthesize nitrogenase enzyme. Apart from nitrogenase enzymes, it also contains other enzymes required for nitrogen fixation. It promotes vegetative reproduction by filament fragmentation. It does not possesses PS II and hence cannot produce oxygen.