Aug. 19, 2014
The Genome Analysis Centre (TGAC), together with the Universidad Nacional de Rio Cuarto (UNRC), Instituto de Agrobiotecnologica Rossario (INDEAR), and other European partners, have completed the genome sequence of a model strain of the soil bacterium Azospirillum brasilense to help improve farming productivity.
The soil bacterium, isolated from wheat roots in the central region of Argentina, has been used as a bio-fertiliser in agriculture during the last four decades. As the most-studied soil bacterium that encourages plant growth, Azospirillum brasilense is responsible for the major improvement of more than a hundred plant species' growth and yield productivity. One of the main characteristics of the Azospirillum bacterium that aids plant health is its ability to be able to produce plant-growth regulators.
By sequencing the genome of the bacterium's model strain, Azospirillum brasilense(Az39), the potential mechanisms responsible for growth improvement can be unravelled.
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