Abstract
Mycorrhizal short roots of Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud colonized by Suillus variegatus (Sow. ex Fr.) O. Kuntze or Paxillus involutus (Batsch) Fr. were collected 1–>60 days after fungal contact. The proteins of the inoculated roots were extracted, electrophoretically separated, blotted and immunostained for α-tubulin and actin. The development of the mycorrhiza was also followed microscopically. The signal of plant α-tubulin was stronger than the signal of fungal α-tubulin during the first 5 days in S. variegatus mycorrhiza and was then exceeded by fungal α-tubulin. This correlated well with the increase of fungal mycelium in the mycorrhiza. A transient drop in both plant and fungal α-tubulin signals was observed 20 days after fungal contact, suggesting a change in the metabolism of the mycorrhiza. The signals for plant and fungal actins in the mycorrhiza increased steadily during early infection and then remained at a high level as the mycorrhiza matured. Similar trends were observed in P. contorta–P. involutus mycorrhiza. The data from P. contorta–S.variegatus mycorrhizas suggests that α-tubulin is a growth-related protein, subject to changes, while the amount of actin reflects the general metabolic activity of the mycorrhiza. In both mycorrhizal systems clear α-tubulin and actin signals were detected 60 days after colonization, which indicates that the mycorrhizas were metabolically active in spite of their withered appearance.
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