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Effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on plant growth depend on root system: a meta-analysis

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Abstract

Aims

Our aim was to explore the way that root system type affects mycorrhizal growth response of plants.

Methods

An extensive meta-analysis with 943 peer-review publications was conducted to test the difference in mycorrhizal responses between taproot plants and plants with a fibrous root system.

Results

We found that taproot plants showed greater growth response (biomass, P and N uptake) to colonization by arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) than do plant species with fibrous root systems. This response pattern was dependent on stress types, AMF identity and species richness, and particularly the type of stress (abiotic vs. biotic). Taproot plants respond more to AMF than plants with a fibrous root system; but no difference was shown under biotic stress. The interaction effect seen for AMF and biotic stress was significantly higher for plants with fibrous root system, but was not significant between taproot plants and abiotic stress. Difference in biomass response was only found for Glomeraceae and Gigasporaceae between the two types of plants, while difference was found in P uptake response for Glomeraceae and Claroideoglomeraceae. However, plants with fibrous root system showed higher growth response than taproot plants under nematode stress.

Conclusions

Taproot plants might be more dependent on mycorrhiza than plants with fibrous root system. This indicates that environmental conditions can modify the relative abundance of taproot plants and plants with fibrous root system through mycorrhizal functioning, which will regulate plant community dynamics and processes.

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Acknowledgments

This study was funded by the Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 31400373), Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (No. BK20140689) and China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (No. 2014 M561659).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Agriculture, Nanjing Agricultural University, No.1, Weigang Road, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu Province, China

    Haishui Yang, Yajun Dai, Qian Liu & Xinmin Bian

  2. Research Institute of Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry, No.1, Dongxiaofu, Xiangshan Road, Haidian District, Beijing, 100091, China

    Qian Zhang

  3. College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, No. 866 Yuhangtang Road, Hangzhou, 310058, China

    Jianjun Tang & Xin Chen

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  1. Haishui Yang
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  2. Qian Zhang
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  6. Xinmin Bian
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Correspondence to Haishui Yang or Xin Chen.

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Responsible Editor: Erik J. Joner.

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Yang, H., Zhang, Q., Dai, Y. et al. Effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on plant growth depend on root system: a meta-analysis. Plant Soil 389, 361–374 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11104-014-2370-8

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