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Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Rhizobium bacterium

 We know that plants are important to the ecosystem because they photosynthesize. Did you know that some plants are legumes and these are special because they have ROOT NODULES which are nitrogen fixers.  These root nodules are little rooms where Rhizobium bacteria convert nitrogen gas into ammonium and then Nitrobacter bacterium in the soil  converts ammonium into nitrates. Plants can absorb nitrates to make plant protein.  When those plants are eaten by animals, then animals use the nitrogen to make animal protein.  You can say that all the protein on your body (muscles, enzymes, hair, fingernail etc) was built from nitrogen which was fixed by Rhizobium at some point in time.  





ASSIGNMENT: 15 POINTS
15 points total. Draw a picture of root nodules under the dissecting microscope and also a picture of root nodules under the light microscope. Hand this in on TEAMS

 10 points

Only certain plants contain these root nodules...amongst them are  bean plants and clover plants.   Look at the roots of clover and draw a picture of root nodules. 


This picture is from research done by Tashiro et al on the genetics of clover plants.  https://www.researchgate.net/publication/250119450_Leaf_Trait_Coloration_in_White_Clover_and_Molecular_Mapping_of_the_Red_Midrib_and_Leaflet_Number_Traits



 5 marks 
UPLOAD A PIC OF ROOT NODULES UNDER THE MICROSCOPE and label this drawing.