Altering light availability to the plant host determined the identity of the dominant ectomycorrhizal fungal partners and mediated mycorrhizal effects on plant growth

Botany ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 89 (7) ◽  
pp. 439-450 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miroslav Kummel ◽  
Phoebe Lostroh

Variation in light availability likely impacts the processes that determine the identity of ectomycorrhizal fungi associated with the host plant, and the resulting changes in fungal composition may modify the plant’s growth response to light. Our two field surveys and two field experiments using Abies balsamea (L.) Mill. seedlings show that the identity of the dominant ectomycorrhizal fungus changed in response to natural and experimentally induced variation in light. Plants in low light were mostly dominated by a Cenococcum -like morphotype, and plants in high light were mostly dominated by a Lactarius -like morphotype. The patterns of absolute abundance show the key role of plant size: the absolute abundance of the Lactarius-like morphotype increased with increasing light and increasing root system size, whereas the absolute abundance of the Cenococcum-like morphotype was unrelated to both variables. Root system size increased with light availability. With increasing light, growth of plants dominated by the Lactarius-like morphotype decreased with respect to average plants, and therefore, as the Lactarius-like morphotype was increasing in dominance, it was decreasing in mutualistic effectiveness. Plants dominated by Cenococcum had lower growth compared with plants dominated by Lactarius in low light. However, the effects of the two morphotypes were indistinguishable in high light. Our results are likely driven by an interaction of priority effects and light-limited plant growth.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Maria Cockerton ◽  
Bo Li ◽  
Eleftheria Stavridou ◽  
Abigail Johnson ◽  
Amanda Karlström ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Phosphate is an essential plant macronutrient required to achieve maximum crop yield. Roots are able to uptake soil phosphate from the immediate root area, thus creating a nutrient depletion zone. Many plants are able to exploit phosphate from beyond this root nutrient depletion zone through symbiotic association with Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF). Here we characterise the relationship between root architecture, AMF association and low phosphate tolerance in strawberries. The contrasting root architecture in the parental strawberry cultivars ‘Redgauntlet’ and ‘Hapil’ was studied through a mapping population of 168 progeny. Low phosphate tolerance and AMF association was quantified for each genotype to allow assessment of the phenotypic and genotypic relationships between traits. Results: A “phosphate scavenging” root phenotype where individuals exhibit a high proportion of surface lateral roots was associated with a reduction in root system size across genotypes. A genetic correlation between “root system size” traits was observed with a network of pleiotropic QTL were found to represent five “root system size” traits. By contrast, average root diameter and the distribution of roots appeared to be under two discrete methods of genetic control. A total of 18 QTL were associated with plant traits, 4 of which were associated with solidity that explained 46 % of the observed variation. Investigations into the relationship between AMF association and root architecture found that a higher root density was associated with greater AMF colonisation across genotypes. However, no phenotypic correlation or genotypic association was found between low phosphate tolerance and the propensity for AMF association, nor root architectural traits when plants are grown under optimal nutrient conditions.Conclusions: Understanding the genetic relationships underpinning phosphate capture can inform the breeding of strawberry varieties with better nutrient use efficiency. Solid root systems were associated with greater AMF colonisation. However, low P-tolerance was not phenotypically or genotypically associated with root architecture traits in strawberry plants. Furthermore, a trade-off was observed between root system size and root architecture type, highlighting the energetic costs associated with a “phosphate scavenging” root architecture.


2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victoria Figueroa-Bustos ◽  
Jairo A. Palta ◽  
Yinglong Chen ◽  
Katia Stefanova ◽  
Kadambot H. M. Siddique

2004 ◽  
Vol 82 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jarkko Korhonen ◽  
Minna-Maarit Kytöviita ◽  
Pirkko Siikamäki

Light levels under the forest canopy are low and generally limit plant photosynthetic gains. We hypothesized that in low-light habitats, plant photosynthate acquisition is too low to allow the same magnitude of resource allocation to symbiosis and reproduction as in high-light habitats. We tested this hypothesis in a field study where Geranium sylvaticum L. plants were collected on three occasions during the growing season from shade and light habitats. In addition, we investigated the relationship between mycorrhizal colonization level and soil nutrient levels in shade and high-light habitats over a growing season. We found that light availability affects resource allocation in G. sylvaticum. Plants were intensively colonized with both arbuscular mycorrhizal and dark septate fungi, and the colonization intensities of these two different groups of fungi correlated positively with each other. In comparison with high-light meadows, mycorrhizal colonization levels were as high or higher in low-light forest habitats, but plants produced fewer flowers. This indicates that allocation to symbiosis was of higher priority than allocation to reproduction in low light. Seed size was not affected by light levels and did not correlate with fungal colonization levels. We found no relationship between fungal colonization levels and soil characteristics.Key words: arbuscular mycorrhiza, dark septate fungi, Geranium sylvaticum, reproduction, shade.


2013 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 545-551 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petr Svačina ◽  
Tomáš Středa ◽  
Oldřich Chloupek

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Maria Cockerton ◽  
Bo Li ◽  
Eleftheria Stavridou ◽  
Abigail Johnson ◽  
Amanda Karlström ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Phosphate is an essential plant macronutrient required to achieve maximum crop yield. Roots are able to uptake soil phosphate from the immediate root area, thus creating a nutrient depletion zone. Many plants are able to exploit phosphate from beyond this root nutrient depletion zone through symbiotic association with Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF). Here we characterise the relationship between root architecture, AMF association and low phosphate tolerance in strawberries. The contrasting root architecture in the parental strawberry cultivars ‘Redgauntlet’ and ‘Hapil’ was studied through a mapping population of 168 progeny. Low phosphate tolerance and AMF association was quantified for each genotype to allow assessment of the phenotypic and genotypic relationships between traits. Results A “phosphate scavenging” root phenotype where individuals exhibit a high proportion of surface lateral roots was associated with a reduction in root system size across genotypes. A genetic correlation between “root system size” traits was observed with a network of pleiotropic QTL were found to represent five “root system size” traits. By contrast, average root diameter and the distribution of roots appeared to be under two discrete methods of genetic control. A total of 18 QTL were associated with plant traits, 4 of which were associated with solidity that explained 46 % of the observed variation. Investigations into the relationship between AMF association and root architecture found that a higher root density was associated with greater AMF colonisation across genotypes. However, no phenotypic correlation or genotypic association was found between low phosphate tolerance and the propensity for AMF association, nor root architectural traits when plants are grown under optimal nutrient conditions. Conclusions Understanding the genetic relationships underpinning phosphate capture can inform the breeding of strawberry varieties with better nutrient use efficiency. Solid root systems were associated with greater AMF colonisation. However, low P-tolerance was not phenotypically or genotypically associated with root architecture traits in strawberry plants. Furthermore, a trade-off was observed between root system size and root architecture type, highlighting the energetic costs associated with a “phosphate scavenging” root architecture.


PeerJ ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. e11587
Author(s):  
Alexander Brown ◽  
Robert W. Heckman

Light limitation is a major driver of succession and an important determinant of the performance of shade-intolerant tree seedlings. Shade intolerance may result from a resource allocation strategy characterized by rapid growth and high metabolic costs, which may make shade-intolerant species particularly sensitive to nutrient limitation and pathogen pressure. In this study, we evaluated the degree to which nitrogen availability and fungal pathogen pressure interact to influence plant performance across different light environments. To test this, we manipulated nitrogen availability (high, low) and access by foliar fungal pathogens (sprayed with fungicide, unsprayed) to seedlings of the shade-intolerant tree, Liquidambar styraciflua, growing at low and high light availability, from forest understory to adjacent old field. Foliar fungal damage varied with light and nitrogen availability; in low light, increasing nitrogen availability tripled foliar damage, suggesting that increased nutrient availability in low light makes plants more susceptible to disease. Despite higher foliar damage under low light, spraying fungicide to exclude pathogens promoted 14% greater plant height only under high light conditions. Thus, although nitrogen availability and pathogen pressure each influenced aspects of plant performance, these effects were context dependent and overwhelmed by light limitation. This suggests that failure of shade-intolerant species to invade closed-canopy forest can be explained by light limitation alone.


1994 ◽  
Vol 119 (4) ◽  
pp. 793-797 ◽  
Author(s):  
W.A. Erb ◽  
A.D. Draper ◽  
H.J. Swartz

Interspecific blueberry (Vaccinium spp.) progenies were examined to determine combining abilities and genetic variability for seedling root system size and shoot vigor and to establish whether a large root system is correlated with good growth when plants are grown on a mineral soil and exposed to a moderate soil water deficit. General combining ability (GCA) variance components for root system size and shoot vigor and specific combining ability variance components for shoot vigor were significant. US226, a tetraploid hybrid of V. myrtilloides Michaux × V. atrococcum Heller, had the highest GCA effect for root system size and the lowest GCA effect for shoot vigor. US75 (V. darrowi Camp × V. corymbosum L.) had the highest GCA effect for shoot vigor and was second in GCA effect for root system size. Comparison of the crosses containing G111 (V. corymbosum) with those containing G362 (V. corymbosum) indicates that selecting for the best V. corymbosum clone to start a breeding program seems as important as selecting the mineral soil-adapted parent. Root system ratings were highly correlated with total dry weight of field-grown plants (r = 0.89). The method used in this study to evaluate seedlings for root system size and shoot vigor could be used to eliminate the less vigorous plants from a population before field planting and to evaluate mineral soil adaptability.


Author(s):  
Martin Hajzler ◽  
Jana Klimešová ◽  
Petra Procházková ◽  
Tomáš Středa

Growing catch crops is one of the possible strategies to decrease erosion and nitrogen loss from soil profiles. Biomass yield and root system size have significant impacts on the soil nitrogen content. a three‑year field experiment with eight varieties of white mustard (Sinapis alba L.) was established to evaluate the effects of genotype and environment on biomass yield, soil nitrogen content and rooting parameters. Significant effects of genotype were found for root length density (RLD), root surface density (RSD) and specific root length (SRL) in the plow layer (0 – 20 cm) and for root system size (RSS), measured by electrical capacitance method, during three phenological phases. Higher biomass yield in varieties with higher RLD and RSD values during ripening and a larger RSS during flowering were found in dry conditions. Relationship of the root system and biomass yield to nitrate and ammonia nitrogen content varied in different environments. We found a significant relation between the RSS and ammonia nitrogen content in more fertile environment on average over the three years. The nitrate nitrogen content was related to the RLD, RSD and SRL in favorable year at shallow soil depths (0 – 20 cm).


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