Effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on abiotic stress tolerance in crops: a review

Abstract:

There are a large number of different microbial resources in soil. Soil microorganisms cooperate with most plants in nature, among which arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) play an important role. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi can form symbiosis with about 90% of plants, providing nutrients for plants by forming arbuscular structures in plants’ roots. Our objective is to understand the effects of AMF inoculation on the tolerance of abiotic stresses of crops during growth (such as drought, extreme temperature, heavy metal pollution, salinity, adverse soil pH changes, etc.). Based on previous studies on the effects of AMF on maize growth under nutrient stress, on the basis of expanding crop varieties, new findings with practical significance were obtained by referring to a large number of literatures, combining with our own experimental research and the latest research progress of predecessors and AMF in recent years. The results are as follows: AMF help plant growth, improve plant nutrition uptake, and protect plants from various environmental stresses. It can be concluded that: AMF use a variety of mechanisms to improve plant growth and crop resistance, create benefits for increased crop yields and farmers’ incomes, and avoid some of the harmful environmental problems caused by excessive fertilizer use. In this paper, the beneficial effects of AMF on plant growth and development under various abiotic environmental stresses (drought, extreme temperature, heavy metal pollution, salinity, adverse soil pH changes, etc.) are reviewed, and different plant responses to mycorrhizal inoculation are summarized. At the same time, some suggestions are provided for the current deficiency and future research.