Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34511061›Full record

ArticleBMC microbiology2021

The Mesorhizobium huakuii transcriptional regulator AbiEi plays a critical role in nodulation and is important for bacterial stress response.

Xiaohong Chen, Aiqi Hu, Qian Zou, Sha Luo, Hetao Wu, Chunlan Yan, Tao Liu, Donglan He, Xiaohua Li, Guojun Cheng

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC microbiology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
1.1field-weighted citation impact, top 18% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Mobile gene clusters and coexpressed plant-rhizobium pathways drive partner quality variation in symbiosis.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025
    Article
  2. Comparative genomic analysis ofMicrobiology spectrum · 2024
    Article
  3. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Xiaohong Chen *Hubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Resources and Utilization of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China.
Aiqi Hu *Hubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Resources and Utilization of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China.
Qian ZouHubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Resources and Utilization of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China.
Sha LuoHubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Resources and Utilization of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China.
Hetao WuHubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Resources and Utilization of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China.
Chunlan YanHubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Resources and Utilization of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China.
Tao LiuHubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Resources and Utilization of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China.
Donglan HeHubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Resources and Utilization of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China.
Xiaohua LiHubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Resources and Utilization of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China.
Guojun ChengHubei Provincial Engineering and Technology Research Center for Resources and Utilization of Microbiology, College of Life Sciences, South-Central University for Nationalities, Wuhan, 430074, Hubei, China. chengguojun@mail.scuec.edu.cn.
South Central University for Nationalities · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundBacterial abortive infection (Abi) systems are type IV toxin-antitoxin (TA) system, which could elicit programmed cell death and constitute a native survival strategy of pathogenic bacteria under various stress conditions. However, no rhizobial AbiE family TA system has been reported so far. Here, a M. huakuii AbiE TA system was identified and characterized.

resultsA mutation in M. huakuii abiEi gene, encoding an adjacent GntR-type transcriptional regulator, was generated by homologous recombination. The abiEi mutant strain grew less well in rich TY medium, and displayed increased antioxidative capacity and enhanced gentamicin resistance, indicating the abiEi operon was negatively regulated by the antitoxin AbiEi in response to the oxidative stress and a particular antibiotic. The mRNA expression of abiEi gene was significantly up-regulated during Astragalus sinicus nodule development. The abiEi mutant was severely impaired in its competitive ability in rhizosphere colonization, and was defective in nodulation with 97% reduction in nitrogen-fixing capacity. The mutant infected nodule cells contained vacuolation and a small number of abnormal bacteroids with senescence character. RNA-seq experiment revealed it had 5 up-regulated and 111 down-regulated genes relative to wild type. Of these down-regulated genes, 21 are related to symbiosis nitrogen fixation and nitrogen mechanism, 16 are involved in the electron transport chain and antioxidant responses, and 12 belong to type VI secretion system (T6SS).

conclusionsM. huakuii AbiEi behaves as a key transcriptional regulator mediating root nodule symbiosis.

Indexed as

Plant Root NodulationAstragalus PlantBacterial ProteinsGene Expression Regulation, BacterialMesorhizobiumOxidative StressStress, PhysiologicalTranscription FactorsBacterial ProteinsTranscription FactorsMesorhizobium huakuiiRNA-Seq analysis of nodule bacteroidsSymbiosis nitrogen fixationTranscriptional regulator AbiEiType IV toxin–antitoxin system

Identifiers

PMID34511061
PMCPMC8436566
OpenAlexW3199503874

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.