AUTHOR=Bitas Vasileios , McCartney Nathaniel , Li Ningxiao , Demers Jill , Kim Jung-Eun , Kim Hye-Seon , Brown Kathleen M. , Kang Seogchan 

TITLE=Fusarium Oxysporum Volatiles Enhance Plant Growth Via Affecting Auxin Transport and Signaling

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Microbiology

VOLUME=6

YEAR=2015

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2015.01248

DOI=10.3389/fmicb.2015.01248

ISSN=1664-302X

ABSTRACT=<p>Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have well-documented roles in plant-plant communication and directing animal behavior. In this study, we examine the less understood roles of VOCs in plant-fungal relationships. Phylogenetically and ecologically diverse strains of <italic>Fusarium oxysporum</italic>, a fungal species complex that often resides in the rhizosphere of assorted plants, produce volatile compounds that augment shoot and root growth of <italic>Arabidopsis thaliana</italic> and tobacco. Growth responses of <italic>A. thaliana</italic> hormone signaling mutants and expression patterns of a GUS reporter gene under the auxin-responsive DR5 promoter supported the involvement of auxin signaling in <italic>F. oxysporum</italic> volatile-mediated growth enhancement. In addition, 1-naphthylthalamic acid, an inhibitor of auxin efflux, negated <italic>F. oxysporum</italic> volatile-mediated growth enhancement in both plants. Comparison of the profiles of volatile compounds produced by <italic>F. oxysporum</italic> strains that differentially affected plant growth suggests that the relative compositions of both growth inhibitory and stimulatory compounds may determine the degree of plant growth enhancement. Volatile-mediated signaling between fungi and plants may represent a potentially conserved, yet mostly overlooked, mechanism underpinning plant-fungus interactions and fungal niche adaption.</p>