Sesbania spp., Aeschynomene indica and Crotalaria spp. are amide-exporters

Abstract

Extract

Leguminous plants consist of two groups, amide-exporting and ureide-exporting plants. The former legumes export a large fraction of fixed-N in the form of amides (asparagine and glutamine), and the latter legumes in the form of ureides (allantoic acid and allantoin). Another characteristic of the nodules is the enrichment in ¹⁵N. There are two types of legumes: one characterized by the enrichment with ¹⁵N in N₂-fixing nodules, in contrast to the other where the enrichment does not occur. The first investigation by Shearer et al. (1982) suggested that the nodules exporting fixed-N in the form of ureides were enriched in ¹⁵N unlike those exporting it in the form of amides. Soybeans, mungbean, and cowpea belong to the former group and groundnut, alfalfa, white clover to the latter. Although pea and faba bean were first classified into the latter group (Shearer et al. 1982), a recent investigation (Yoneyama 1988) showed that these nodules were also enriched in ¹⁵N.

Key Words:

• Aeschynomene indica
• amino acids
• Crotalaria spp.
• Sesbania spp.