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Medicago truncatula shows distinct patterns of mycorrhiza-related gene expression after inoculation with three different arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi

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Abstract

Different arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) alter growth and nutrition of a given plant differently. Plant gene expression patterns in response to fungal colonization show a certain overlap when colonized by fungi of the Glomeraceae. However, little is known of plant responses to fungi of different fungal taxa, e.g. the Gigasporaceae. We therefore compared the impact of colonization by three taxonomically different AMF species (Glomus intraradices, Glomus mosseae and Scutellospora castanea) on Medicago truncatula at the physiological and transcriptional level using quantitative-PCR. Each AMF developed a species-typical colonization pattern, with a colonization degree of 60% for G. intraradices and 30% for G. mosseae. Both species developed appressoria, intraradical hyphae, arbuscules and vesicles. S. castanea showed a colonization degree of 10% and developed appressoria, intraradical hyphae, arbuscules and arbusculate coils. All AMF enhanced the plant biomass accumulation and nutritional status although not in correlation with the colonization degree. The expression of 10 mycorrhiza-specific or mycorrhiza-associated plant genes could be separated into two clusters. The first cluster, containing arbuscule-induced genes, was highly induced in interactions with G. intraradices and G. mosseae but also slightly induced by S. castanea. The second cluster of genes contained genes that were induced primarily by S. castanea. In conclusion, genes that respond to colonization by fungi of the genus Glomus also respond to Scutellospora. However, there is also a group of genes that is significantly induced only by Scutellospora and not by Glomus species in this study. Our data indicate that genes may be differentially regulated in response to the different AM fungi.

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Abbreviations

AM:

Arbuscular mycorrhiza

AMF:

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus

G.:

Glomus

Gi:

G. intraradices

Gi.:

Gigaspora

Gm:

G. mosseae

S.:

Scutellospora

Sc:

S. castanea

P:

Phosphorus

N:

Nitrogen

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank Kurt Ineichen (University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland) for maintaining and providing the fungal inoculum and Dr. Petra M. A. Fransson and Dr. Andrew F. S. Taylor (Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Department of Forest Mycology and Pathology, Uppsala, Sweden) for reading and commenting on the manuscript. M.E. is financed by a grant from the Swedish Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning. Work at the University of Basel was supported by grants of the Swiss National Science Foundation to T.B. and A.W.

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Author notes

  1. Nadja Feddermann

    Present address: Department of Forest Mycology and Pathology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P.O. Box 7026, 75007, Uppsala, Sweden

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Botanical Institute of Basel University, Hebelstrasse 1, 4056, Basel, Switzerland

    Nadja Feddermann, Thomas Boller, Peter Salzer & Andres Wiemken

  2. Department of Forest Mycology and Pathology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P.O. Box 7026, 75007, Uppsala, Sweden

    Malin Elfstrand

  3. Department of Crop Production Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P.O. Box 7043, 75007, Uppsala, Sweden

    Sara Elfstrand

Authors
  1. Nadja Feddermann
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  2. Thomas Boller
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  3. Peter Salzer
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  4. Sara Elfstrand
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  5. Andres Wiemken
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  6. Malin Elfstrand
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Correspondence to Malin Elfstrand.

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Feddermann, N., Boller, T., Salzer, P. et al. Medicago truncatula shows distinct patterns of mycorrhiza-related gene expression after inoculation with three different arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Planta 227, 671–680 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-007-0649-1

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