Glycoside Hydrolases from Legumes and Rhizobia at the Symbiotic Interface

Extracellular glycoside hydrolases are involved in both the synthesis and degradation of bacterial determinants required for nodulation. Both symbiotic partners contribute to the enzyme cocktail at the symbiotic interface. Glycoside hydrolases from host legumes play an important, but poorly understood, role in inactivation of rhizobial Nod factors. Rhizobial exo-oligosaccharides are symbiotic determinants in certain Sinorhizobium-legume interactions. In our laboratory, research work on glycoside hydrolases is focused on Nod factor hydrolases from legumes induced by Nod factor signaling, a symbiosis-related chitinase from Medicago truncatula, and rhizobial glycanases required for synthesis of exo-oligosaccharides.