PLANT-ARBUSCULAR MYCORRHIZAL FUNGI INTERACTIONS

Arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis is formed between the roots of over 80 % of all terrestrial plant species and Zygomycete fungi of the order Glomales. The beneficial effects of this symbiosis occur as a result of a complex molecular dialogue between the two symbiotic partners. Identifying the molecules involved in this dialogue is a prerequisite for a better understanding of the symbiosis. Although there is evidence for an interplay of signaling-recognition events at different stages during plant-fungal interactions in arbuscular mycorrhiza, the nature of signaling molecules and signal perception/transduction processes are still not known. To unlock the potential of arbuscular mycorrhiza for sustainable agriculture, we must identify the key molecular players. A number of methods are available for those researchers considering the addition of molecular analyses of arbuscular fungi to their research projects and weighing the various approaches they might take. Increasingly powerful molecular methods for analyzing arbuscular communities make this area of research available to a much wider range of researchers.