Effect of salt stress on carbon metabolism and bacteroid respiration in root nodules of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)

In the present work, we examined the effect of salinity on growth, N fixation and carbon metabolism in the nodule cytosol and bacteroids of Phaseolus vulgaris, and measured the O-2 consumption by bacteroids incubated with or without the addition of exogenous respiratory substrates. The aim was to ascertain whether the compounds that accumulate under salt stress can increase bacteroid respiration and whether this capacity changes in response to salinity in root nodules of Phaseolus vulgaris. The plants were grown in a controlled environment chamber, and 50, 100 mM or no NaCl (control) was added to the nutrient solution. Two harvests were made, at the vegetative growth period and at the beginning of the reproductive period. The enzyme activities in the nodule cytosol were reduced by the salt treatments, while in the bacteroid cytosol the enzyme activities increased at high salt concentrations at the first harvest and for ADH in all treatments. The data presented here confirm that succinate and malate are the preferred substrates for bacteroid respiration in common bean, but these bacteroids may also utilize glucose, either in control or under saline conditions. The addition of proline or lactate to the incubation medium significantly raised oxygen consumption in the bacteroids isolated from plants treated with salt.