Root colonization by Agrobacterium tumefaciens was measured by using tomato and Arabidopsis thaliana roots dipped in a bacterial suspension and planted in soil. Wild-type bacteria showed extensive growth on tomato roots; the number of bacteria increased from 103 bacteria/cm of root length at the time of inoculation to more than 107 bacteria/cm after 10 days. The numbers of cellulose-minus and nonattaching attB, attD, and attR mutant bacteria were less than 1/10,000th the number of wild-type bacteria recovered from tomato roots. On roots of A. thaliana ecotype Landsberg erecta, the numbers of wild- type bacteria increased from about 30 to 8,000 bacteria/cm of root length after 8 days. The numbers of cellulose-minus and nonattaching mutant bacteria were 1/100th to 1/10th the number of wild-type bacteria recovered after 8 days. The attachment of A. tumefaciens to cut A. thaliana mots incubated in 0.4% sucrose and observed with a light microscope was also reduced with cel and att mutants. These results suggest that cellulose synthesis and attachment genes play a role in the ability of the bacteria to colonize roots, as well as in bacterial pathogenesis.
CITATION STYLE
Matthysse, A. G., & Mcmahan, S. (1998). Root colonization by Agrobacteriurn tumefaciens is reduced in cel, attB, attD, and attR mutants. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 64(7), 2341–2345. https://doi.org/10.1128/aem.64.7.2341-2345.1998
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