Abstract
We identified five taxonomic groups of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) inside roots of young trees of six species of legumes and six species of non-legumes from a field site in southern Costa Rica using an AMF group-specific PCR assay of the intergenic transcribed sequence and 18S rRNA gene fragment. Assay specificity was verified by cloning and sequencing representatives from four of the five AMF groups. We found no difference in overall AMF diversity levels between legumes and non-legumes or between plant species. Some groups of AMF may associate more frequently with legumes than others, as Glomus Group A (Glomus mosseae/intradices group) representatives were detected more frequently in legumes than non-legumes relative to Glomus Group B (Glomus etunicatum/claroideum) representatives.
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Acknowledgments
The authors thank Eduer Sandi Tapia, Rolando Mendez Rodriguez, and Leonel Figueroa Vargas for their conscientious assistance in the field work. We thank F. Eliott for technical assistance in the laboratory. Financial support was provided by University of California Research Expeditions Program and Rainforest Agrarian International Network.
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Shepherd, M., Nguyen, L., Jones, M.E. et al. A method for assessing arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi group distribution in tree roots by intergenic transcribed sequence variation. Plant Soil 290, 259–268 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-006-9157-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-006-9157-5