Plant-arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal interaction: Insight into sustainable agrosystems

Abstract

Sustainable agriculture is based on the understanding of ecosystem services. It includes environment-friendly methods of farming that allow the production of crops or livestock without damaging human or natural systems. Among the micro-organisms, the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi play a vital role in increasing the crop yield without compromising the soil fertility and thus assist in sustainable agriculture. As President of the Mycological Society of India (MSI), I express my deep sense of gratitude to the esteemed members of MSI for their continued efforts over the years to promote the growth of mycology in our country and raise our Society to greater heights in the coming years. This review focuses on plant-AM fungal interaction as well as provides an insight into sustainable agroecosystems. The rhizosphere microbiome comprises functionally diverse microorganisms ranging from plant pathogens to mutualists. Among the latter are AM fungi, which are considered the most prominent examples of interactions between plants and microorganisms. This plant-AM fungal interaction significantly affects the competence of the host plant's roots to absorb several nutrients, especially phosphorus (P), from the soil. Production and application of AM fungal inoculum are most easily recognized as an AM fungal technology. However, there is a need to determine the mechanism of plant-AM fungal interaction within given socio-economic constraints for the sustainable functioning of agroecosystems.