Read the following passage carefully and answer the given questions.
Biofertilisers
Biofertilisers are organisms that enrich the nutrient quality of the soil and their main sources are bacteria, fungi and cyanobacteria. You have studied about the nodules on the roots of leguminous plants formed by the symbiotic association of Rhizobium. These bacteria can fix atmospheric nitrogen into organic forms. Other bacteria can also fix atmospheric nitrogen while free-living in the soil (examples Azospirillum and Azotobacter). Fungi are also known to form symbiotic associations with plants (mycorrhiza). Many members of the genus Glomus form mycorrhiza. Plants having such associations show other benefits also, such as resistance to root-borne pathogens, tolerance to salinity and drought, and an overall increase in plant growth and development. Cyanobacteria are autotrophic microbes widely distributed in aquatic and terrestrial environments many of which can fix atmospheric nitrogen, e.g. Anabaena, Nostoc, Oscillatoria, etc. In paddy fields, cyanobacteria serve as an important biofertiliser. Blue green algae also add organic matter in to the soil and increase its fertility. Currently, in our country, a number of biofertilisers are available commercially in the market and farmers use these regularly in their fields to replenish soil nutrients and to reduce dependence on chemical fertilisers.
Nostoc is an example of:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Autotrophic microbe
Option (1) Glomus family — Incorrect. Glomus is a genus of fungi whose members form mycorrhiza with plant roots. Nostoc is a cyanobacterium, which is a bacterium, so it does not belong to Glomus.
Option (2) Autotrophic microbe — Correct. Nostoc is a cyanobacterium (blue-green alga). It has chlorophyll and makes its own food by photosynthesis, so it is autotrophic. It also fixes atmospheric nitrogen and serves as a biofertiliser in paddy fields.
Option (3) Heterotrophic microbe — Incorrect. A heterotroph cannot make its own food. It takes food made by other organisms, like most bacteria and all fungi. Nostoc makes its own food, so it is not heterotrophic.
Option (4) Symbiotic fungi — Incorrect. The symbiotic fungi of the passage are the mycorrhizal fungi such as Glomus. Nostoc is not a fungus at all; it is a bacterium.
Note: The passage is taken from NCERT. NTA has put lines of the NCERT text together to make it. Most CUET (UG) questions come straight from NCERT, so study the book line by line, including figures and their titles.