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2024 Oral Presentations 

Monday, June 3, 2024
Keynote Presentation by Jean-Michel Ané
Leveraging bacterial and plant genetics to optimize associative nitrogen fixation for cereal crops
Jean-Michel Ané, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Tuesday, June 4, 2024
Session 1: Evolution of Symbiotic Associations
Chaired by: Julia Frugoli
Experimental evolution of rhizobia for adaptation to multiple legume hosts and multiple microbes
Tia Harrison, Queen's University

Genetic variation in mechanisms of partner choice within legume-rhizobia symbiosis: pre- and post-nodulation strain selection is host-dependent and far from perfect
Patrick Sydow, The Pennsylvania State University

Functional and structural studies of an iron transporter from Medicago truncatula that is essential for nodulation
Antonella Longo, University of North Texas and BioDiscovery Institute

Short Talk: Disruption of Medicago symbiosis genes creates a complex selective landscape for naturally occurring genetic variation in rhizobia
Sohini Guha, The Pennsylvania State University

Session 2: Symbiosis within the Context of Complex Microbial Environments
Chaired by: Chandra Jack
Assessing mechanisms of mutualism stability: fitness alignment, host performance, and partner fidelity
Chandra Jack, Clark University

Dissection of Novel LysM Receptor-Like Kinases for Distinguishing Between Symbiosis and Immunity
Jingyi Zhang, Oklahoma State University

Exploring the Intersection of Legume Nodulation and Plant Innate Immunity
Jaehyo Song, University of Missouri

Plant Pathways Associated with Competition for Soybean Root Colonization by Bradyrhizobium Strains
Athira Sethu Madhavan, South Dakota State University

Session 3: Applications of Nitrogen-Fixing Symbioses to Agriculture
Chaired by: Eric Bishop von Wettberg
Leveraging alfalfa variety trials to measure seasonal and host-specific selection on nitrogen-fixing rhizobial bacteria
Liana T. Burghardt, The Pennsylvania State University

Improving Nitrogen-Fixing Symbioses in Chickpea
Laura M. Perilla-Henao, University of California-Davis

Towards rhizobial bio-inoculants for common bean in southern Ontario
George diCenzo, Queen’s University

Short Talk: Development of plant-metabolite responsive bacterial biosensors: A novel tool for enhanced N delivery to the crops & sustainable agriculture
Biswajit Samal, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Wednesday, June 5, 2024
Session 4: Physiology and Genetics of Nitrogen-Fixing Bacteria
Chaired by: Ivan J. Oresnik
Relationship between central metabolism and nitrogen fixation in Sinorhizobium meliloti
Ivan J. Oresnik, University of Manitoba

Symbiotic polyhydroxyalkanoate production genes in Sinorhizobium meliloti lead to a host-specific collapse in symbiotic effectiveness with Medicago sativa
Barney Geddes, North Dakota State University

Classifying the wild diversity of Rhizobium plasmids
Peter Young, University of York

Lightning Talk: The role of the NodZ fucosyltransferase in Nod factor signalling
Nicholas Smith, Queen’s University

Lightning Talk: Dipeptide chemotaxis in Sinorhizobium meliloti
Foster Agyei, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Session 5: Ecology of Symbiotic Associations
Chaired by: Liana T. Burghardt
Eco-evolutionary changes in legumes, rhizobia, and their surrounding ecosystems in response nitrogen fertilization
Katy Heath, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Comparing Rhizobium sp. IRBG74 interactions with Sesbania cannabina and rice
Gyaneshwar Prasad, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Unexpected linkage between a regulator of plant root nodulation and a bacteriophage defense system in Sinorhizobium meliloti
Turlough Finan, McMaster University

Short Talk: Abiotic stressors and biotic interactions shape rhizobia-plant interactions in agricultural systems
 Brendan Randall, University of Maryland

Session 6: Novel Approaches to Studying Nitrogen-Fixing Symbioses
Chaired by: Sonali Roy
Enacting partner specificity in legume nodule symbiosis: Beyond Nod-factor perception
Hongyan Zhu, University of Kentucky

A high throughput, automated ARACAS platform measures nitrogen fixation rates from associative diazotrophs in undisturbed, soil-grown cereals.
Allison Schwartz, Pivot Bio

To stress or not to stress: Plant peptides control stress response in symbiotic bacteria
Siva Sankari, Stowers Institute for Medical Research

Short Talk: Exploring the extrachromosomal Sinorhizobium meliloti symbiotic nitrogen-fixing genome through extensive minimization
Jason Kearsley, McMaster University

Thursday, June 6, 2024
Session 7: Engineering New Nitrogen-Fixing Symbioses
Chaired by: Jeanne M. Harris
Modeling metabolic trade-offs in marine algae with nitrogen-fixing organelle
Keisuke Inomura, University of Rhode Island

Regulation of transgene expression from synthetic operons in chloroplast
Qiguo Yu, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Using machine learning to prioritize genes for experimental validation and transformation in non-fixing species
Wendell Pereira, University of Florida

Short Talk: Nod factors in Gram-positive bacteria: Decrypting the mystery using Streptomyces bottropensis
Manish Tiwari, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Session 8: Physiology and Development of the Plant Host
Chaired by: Georgina Hernández
The common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) –Rhizobium etli N-fixing symbiosis: unraveling novel plant regulators through genetic/genomic analyses
Georgina Hernández, Centro de Ciencias Genómicas - UNAM

Identification and characterization of symbiotic nitrogen fixation mutants in the model legume plant Medicago truncatula
Vijaykumar Veerappan, Eastern Connecticut State University

Organogenesis vs. Infection: Divergence of Medicago truncatula NPF1 Transporter Genes to Function in Different Processes of Nodule Development
Julie Raiguel-Meis, University of Vermont

Lightning Talk: Identification of Peptide Responsive Histone Modification genes during Root Nodule Symbiosis in Medicago truncatula
 Shivani Dharam, Tennessee State University

Lightning Talk: Quantitative imaging of auxin-cytokinin relative output during common bean lateral root and nodule development
 Gurdeep Singh, South Dakota State University

Session 9: Effects of the Abiotic Environment on Nitrogen-Fixing Symbioses
Chaired by: Dong Wang
Dual transcriptomics of wild-type and Mtabcg36 nodules reveals differential response of symbiotic partners to metal stress in Medicago truncatula
Sanhita Chakraborty, Texas A&M University

Effect of drought stress on symbiotic nitrogen fixation in forage legumes
Malinda Thilakarathhna, University of Alberta

Short Talk: Enhancing Production Agriculture with Gluconacetobacter diazotrophicus
John Squire, Azotic Technologies

Closing Presentation by Kathryn Jones
Linking growth of the reproductive population of Sinorhizobium meliloti in indeterminate nodules of Medicago sativa (alfalfa) with stages of nodule development
Kathryn Jones, Florida State University

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