Application of AM Fungi to Improve the Value of Medicinal Plants

Abstract

Medicinal products of plant origin have been extensively used in complementary medication for health promotion, disease prevention, and treatments. The demand for medicines of plant origin has increased in recent decades. Attempts to artificially cultivate medicinal plants have become more important due to high demand, low productivity, and difficulties in synthesizing some important active compounds extracted from medicinal plants. Inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi may enhance the growth of medicinal plants and the production of medicinal metabolites. However, the diversity, function, and applications of AM fungi to medicinal plants have received little attention until recently. Advances in studying AM fungi in association with medicinal plants provide better understanding of AM fungi on the improvement of plant growth and active constituent accumulation. The effectiveness of AM fungi in inducing medicinal value of plants provides benchmark information that can be used in development and prioritization of future exploration. This chapter reviews the diversity of AM fungi in the rhizosphere of some valuable medicinal plants and the impact of AM inoculation on the growth and medicinal properties of medicinal plants.