Advances of species diversity of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi

Abstract:

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi play important roles in different ecosystems of the world, to understand the species diversity of AMF could provide scientific basics for conservation and utilization of species resources, while the unculturable nature and higher genetic variability of AMF severely hampered the further advances of AMF. With the developing of research methods and application of the next-generation sequencing technology, it could reveal deeper insights into the AMF species diversity. This paper reviewed the advances in AMF classification systems, AMF species diversity in different host plants and habitats, and research methods (including morphological identification, Sanger sequencing and high throughput sequencing) of AMF species diversity and main problems that occurred in the study of AMF species diversity were also discussed. It was considered that not only new research technologies should be applied to study AMF species diversity in the future, but also the problem of unculturable nature of AMF should be concerned.