Bradyrhizobium japonicum (diazoefficiens)

Bradyrhizobium japonicum (including Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens), a Gram-negative Alphaproteobacterium, is a member of the paraphyletic group of nitrogen-fixing bacteria called rhizobia. Rhizobia live as free-living soil organisms or in symbiosis with leguminous plants. These symbioses are specific, with a rhizobial species able to associate with one or a limited number of plant hosts. The symbiosis between B. japonicum and soybean (Glycine max) is important to agriculture because bacterial nitrogen fixation mitigates the need for chemical nitrogen fertilizer and allows the plant to grow in nitrogen-deficient soils.