Genetics and genomics of the beneficial root symbioses

豆科植物约有2万种，在农业上的重要性仅次于谷类作物。它是人类饮食中蛋白质和油脂的来源，也是动物饲料和饲料作物的优良基础。该科的许多物种也因其药用（如必需矿物质和促进健康的次级代谢物）和观赏特性而受到重视，其中一些被用于生产染料和木材。豆科植物以其富含氮的生活方式，也是天然肥料的重要来源，对全球氮循环的贡献非常显著。在这种情况下，特别重要的是豆科植物与有益的土壤细菌和真菌的共生关系，它们为寄主植物提供氮、磷和其他土壤养分，并负责植物农业产出的很大一部分。通过应用现代分子遗传学和基因组学工具，本提案中描述的研究将显著增加对豆科植物固氮过程机制的了解。从长远来看，该项目的成果有望有助于开发对农业和环境具有重要意义的更有效的固氮品种。

The legume family, encompassing some 20,000 species, is second only to cereal crops in agricultural importance.  It provides a source of proteins and oil in the human diet and constitutes an excellent basis of fodder and forage crops for animals.  Many species of this family are also valued for their medicinal (e.g. essential minerals and health promoting secondary metabolites) and ornamental properties and some are being used in the production of dyes and timber.  Legumes, with their nitrogen-rich life style, also constitute an important source of natural fertilizer and contribute very significantly to the global nitrogen cycle. Of particular importance in this context are the symbiotic associations of legumes with beneficial soil bacteria and fungi, which provide the host plant with nitrogen, phosphorus, and other soil nutrients and are responsible for a significant proportion of the plant agricultural output. By applying modern molecular genetic and genomics tools, the research described in this proposal will significantly add to the knowledge of the mechanisms underlying the nitrogen-fixation process in legumes. In the long term, the outcome of this project is expected to contribute to the development of more efficient nitrogen-fixing cultivars that are of importance to agriculture and the environment.