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Rooting out the cheats
Email: Stuart Blackman - stuart.blackman@talk21.com News from The Scientist 2003, 4(1):20030904-02
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The cooperative relationship between legumes (peas, beans, and their relatives) and the nitrogen-fixing bacteria (rhizobia) that live in nodules on their roots is a textbook example of mutualism. However, it has been unclear why this cooperation is maintained, given the evolutionary temptation to cheat the system. New research led by Ford Denison of the University of California, Davis, provides evidence that legumes maintain good behavior among their rhizobia by imposing sanctions against cheats.
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