Unusual Methyl-Branched α,β-Unsaturated Acyl Chain Substitutions in the Nod Factors of an Arctic Rhizobium, Mesorhizobium sp. Strain N33 ( Oxytropis arctobia )

Abstract

ABSTRACT Mesorhizobium sp. strain N33 ( Oxytropis arctobia ), a rhizobial strain isolated in arctic Canada, is able to fix nitrogen at very low temperatures in association with a few arctic legume species belonging to the genera Astragalus, Onobrychis , and Oxytropis . Using mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, we have determined the structure of N33 Nod factors, which are major determinants of nodulation. They are pentameric lipochito-oligosaccharides 6-O sulfated at the reducing end and exhibit other original substitutions: 6-O acetylation of the glucosamine residue next to the nonreducing terminal glucosamine and N acylation of the nonreducing terminal glucosamine by methyl-branched acyl chains of the iso series, some of which are α,β unsaturated. These unusual substitutions may contribute to the peculiar host range of N33. Analysis of N33 whole-cell fatty acids indicated that synthesis of the methyl-branched fatty acids depended on the induction of bacteria by plant flavonoids, suggesting a specific role for these fatty acids in the signaling process between the plant and the bacteria. Synthesis of the methyl-branched α,β-unsaturated fatty acids required a functional nodE gene.