In the absence of exogeneous nitrogen supply, evaluation of a symbiosis effectiveness of Bradyrhizobium japonicum USDA 110 in a supernodulating soybean mutant, SS2-2, its wild type, Sinpaldalkong 2, and control genotype, Jangyeobkong, was conducted in this study. Nodules in SS2-2 were initially white and similar to its wild type, Sinpaldalkong 2. At the late stage, the wild type nodules became dark pinkish by maturation, by contrast, mature nodules in SS2-2 remained light green to pinkish, indicating a lack of leghemoglobin. Tap root length was short in nodulated symbiotic SS2-2 than that of its wild type and the control genotype. Nodulated root length and nodule density on root length were significantly increased by B. japonicum inoculation, but no significant increase was observed on root length and percentage of nodulation to total root length. Regardless of Bradyrhizobium inoculation, SS2-2 showed higher nodule dry weight and higher acetylene reduction activity (ARA) when compared with its wild type and the control genotype. Inoculation of B. japonicum leaded the increase of ARA in 47 days after planting (DAP), in part because of nodule development. Supernodulating mutant, SS2-2, less responded to B. japonicum induction in terms of nitrogen fixation and nodulation characteristics than its wild type. Thus, interaction of supernodulating soybean mutant with Bradyrhizobium had less symbiotically associated response than normal nodulating soybean.

This experiment was conducted to investigate the changes of growth and maturity and to clarify the function of supernodulating characters, excessive nodules and high biological nitrogen fixation rate (BNF), on maturity in response to different planting time in supernodulating soybean mutants. Two supernodulating soybean mutants, Sakukei4 and SS2-2, and their parent cultivars, Enrei and Shinpaldalkong2, were planted on May 24 and June 15, 2004. The degrees of the shortening of growth days by the planting time delay were 18 to 22 days in four cultivar, and there were no significant differences among the cultivars. However, four cultivars showed the different maturity properties. Sakukei4, mutated from Enrei, showed later maturity than that of Enrei, and 882-2, mutated from Shinpaldalkong2, showed earlier maturity than that of Shinpaldalkong2. The plant and nodule dry weights at R6 stage of Sakukei4 showed the smallest decrement and those of SS2-2 was showed the largest decrement by the delay of planting time. The photosynthetic rates of Sakukei4 during the late reproductive growth period were slowly decreased, however those of SS2-2 were steeply decreased in two planting time treatments. Overall, the growth of Sakukei4 was decreased slowly, however the growth of SS2-2 was decreased sharply according to the delay of planting time. The percentage of seed yield of Sakukei4 in June planting plot compared with May planting plot at R8 stage was 92~% , which was the lowest decreasing rate of yield among the cultivars, and in the case of SS2-2, it was in 76~% , the highest one. These results indicated that the responses of supernodulating mutants by the delay of planting time were very similar to the wild types. This means supernodulating characters in supernodulating soybean mutants might not affect to the maturity property. Additionally, the maturity property could be considered as an important characteristics to decide or to select on the developments of supernodulating soybean mutants, which have a low productivity by an excessive nodules, especially.

This experiment was conducted to clarify the functions of supernodulating characters on seed yield determination through the comparison of agricultural traits of supernodulating soybean mutants, Sakukei4, SS2-2, and their parent cultivars, Enrei and Shinpaldalkong2. The plant dry weights of supernodulating mutants, Sakukei4 and SS2-2, were 52~% and 61~% of their wild type parents at full seed stage (R6). However, the relative growth rate (RGR) from the pod set stage (R3) to R6 of Sakukei4 was 0.022 g/g/day and that of SS2-2 was 0.016 g/g/day, which were higher than those of their parents. Nodule number and dry weight were increased in two supernodulating mutants by the R6 stage. The nitrogen concentrations of leaf, petiole and stem of Sakukei4 were higher than those of Enrei. SS2-2 showed higher nitrogen concentration in petiole than Shinpaldalkong2 had. The positive correlations were appeared between nodule dry weight, plant dry weight and pod number, in two supernodulating mutants during the period from R3 to R6 stage. Although all of the yield components and seed yield were lower in two supernodulating mutants than their parents at the stage of full maturity (R8), the harvest index was higher in supernodulating mutants. The increasing rates of pod number to stem dry weight in two supernodulating mutants showed the higher than those of two their parents at R8 stage. In conclusion, the relative growth rates during the early to the middle reproductive growth period were higher in supernodulating mutants than the wild types. This could be resulted in an increase in pod number. The increase of relative growth rate was the result of the successive supplement of nitrogen source from biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) of nodules during the middle reproductive growth period in supernodulating mutants.

Nodule development was regulated partially by host plant factors originating in the shoots and roots. This study was performed to identify the origin of the factors regulating nodulation in supernodulating soybean (Glycine max [L.] Merr.) mutant 'SS2-2' which was isolated recently from ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS) mutagenesis of 'Sinpaldalkong 2'. Self- and reciprocal-grafts were made among three soybean genotypes which consisted of two supernodulating mutants, SS2-2 and 'nts 382', and a normal nodulating Sinpaldalkong 2. Self-grafted supernodulating mutants were characterized by greater nodule number, nodule dry weight, and C2 H2 reduction activity than self-grafted wild types. They were also characterized by relatively higher nodule to root dry weight. Significant shoot genotypic effects were observed on nodule number, nodule dry weight, and C2~;H2 reduction activity per plant, whereas varying root genotypes had no effects. From this result, it is surmised that supernodulating characters are controlled by a graft-transmissible shoot factor, and mutant SS2-2 may have similar nodulation mechanism to the former supernodulating nts 382. In all grafts, both supernodulating mutants and Sinpaldalkong 2 maintained the similar balance between above ground and below ground parts regardless of significant differences in partitioning of dry matter into root and nodule between supernodulating mutants and Sinpaldalkong 2.

Inhibition of nodule formation and nitrogen fixation by soil nitrogen, primarily nitrate, is well known in legume plants. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the effect of NO3- on the nodulation, nitrogenase activity, and growth of supernodulating soybean mutant and its wild type. A greenhouse study was conducted to compare two of supernodulating mutants, 'SS2-2' and 'nts 382', with the normal nodulating cultivar 'Sinpaldalkong 2' when grown in a 1-l styroform cup filled with sand, and fertilized with five levels of NO3- (0, 2, 4, 8, and 12 mM). During the growth period, each plant was supplied two or three times a week with 50 mL of nutrient solution. Supernodulating soybean mutants, SS2-2 and nts 382, showed more nodules and nodule mass, and greater C2~;H2 activity than the wild type, Sinpaldalkong 2, regardless of the level of exogeneous nitrogen supply. On the other hand, total dry weight of SS2-2 mutant, which was smaller than Sinpaldalkong 2, did not respond to the various NO3- -N levels. This suggested that supernodulating SS2-2 mutant could maintain fairly high total dry weight at the low NO3- -N level, even in the absence of exogeneous NO3- -N in the nutrient solution. From the reduced top growth and high nitrogen fixing ability of supernodulating mutants, it was surmised that supernodulating mutant could potentially protect agricultural environments from pollution through the reduction in nitrogen fertilization as well as maintain fairly high yield with increasing planting density.

콩에서 돌연변이를 효율적으로 유기시킬 수 있는 적정 EMS농도를 결정하기 위하여, 황금콩, 장엽콩, 검정콩 001에 30, 50, 70mM EMS세 수준으로 처리 한 다음 M1 종자의 포장발아율과 M2 세대의 돌연변이체 출현빈도율을 조사하였으며 다량 뿌리혹형성 변이체 선발을 위하여 신팔달콩002 종자 약 18,000립에 30mM EMS를 처리하여 M2 세대에서 선발하고, 선발된 변이체의 뿌리혹 형성능력을 미국 초다뿌리혹형성 nts계통과 비교한 결과는 다음과 같다. 1. M1 종자의 포장출현율은 검정콩 001가 황금콩과 장엽콩보다 높은 경향이었으며, 세 품종 모두 EMS처리 농도가 증가함에 따라 포장출현율이 낮았다. 2. M2 세대에서 돌연변이개체는 엽록소 결핍개체가 가장 많이 출현하였는데, 그외에도 생장점괴사, 엽이상, 엽수변이체, 단경 등 다양한 변이양상을 보였다. 3. 30mM EMS처리가 포장발아율도 높고, 돌연변이개체 출현율도 50, 70mM에 비하여 양호한 편으로 판단되었다. 4. 신팔달콩 002로부터 30mM EMS처리에 의하여 M2 세대에서 뿌리혹 형성 nts계통보다도 많은 뿌리혹이 형성되었으며, 뿌리혹형성도 일찍 시작되었다.