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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Microbe and Virus Interactions with Plants
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1431120

The ectomycorrhizal fungus Scleroderma bovista improves growth of hazelnut seedlings and plays a role in auxin signaling and transport

Provisionally accepted
Yunqing Cheng Yunqing Cheng Siyu Sun Siyu Sun Hanxiao Lou Hanxiao Lou Yutong Dong Yutong Dong Hongli He Hongli He Qi Mei Qi Mei Jianfeng Liu Jianfeng Liu *
  • Jilin Normal University, Siping, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Scleroderma bovista can form symbiotic ectomycorrhiza with hazel roots, facilitating the growth and development of host plants and fungi. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of ectomycorrhizal fungus S. bovista on the growth and development of hazel roots and gene expression changes through comparative transcriptome analysis. After inoculation with S. bovista, the fungus symbiotically formed ectomycorrhiza with hazel roots. The fresh weights of the aboveground and underground parts of My treatment (inoculated with S. bovista and formed mycorrhiza) were much higher than those of the control, respectively. The length, project area, surface area, volume, forks, and diameter of the inoculated seedlings root were 1.13 to 2.48 times higher than those of the control. In the paired comparison, 3,265 upregulated and 1,916 downregulated genes were identified. The most significantly enriched Gene Ontology term for the upregulated Differentially Expressed Genes was GO:0005215 (transporter activity). Immunohistochemical analysis suggested that the expression levels of auxin and Auxin Response Factor9 were significantly increased by S. bovista after the formation of mycorrhizal fungi in hazelnut root tips. These results indicate that genes related to auxin biosynthesis, transport and signaling, and transport of nutrients may contribute to root development regulation in hazel ectomycorrhiza.

    Keywords: Hazel, ectomycorrhizal fungus, comparative transcriptome, Scleroderma bovista, Growth

    Received: 11 May 2024; Accepted: 23 Jul 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Cheng, Sun, Lou, Dong, He, Mei and Liu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Jianfeng Liu, Jilin Normal University, Siping, China

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