Effect of Inoculating the Root System of Plants with Endophyte Cylindrocarpon magnusianum on Plant Performance When Exposed to Heavy Metal Salts

Abstract

The effect of inoculation with endotrophic micromycete Cylindrocarpon magnusianum on the physiological and biochemical parameters of test tomato plants when exposed to heavy metal salts was studied. The experimental scheme included inoculation with a fungal culture (control population) and with populations of this fungus that were previously adapted to this stress factor. The inoculated plants were then grown under control conditions and on substrates with different concentrations of heavy metal salts (zinc, copper, lead, and chromium). No stimulating effect that increases the resistance of plants to heavy metal salts after inoculation of plants by the control population of the fungus C. magnusianum was detected. When using nonbiogenic chemical elements, adaptive plant responses associated with the content of photosynthetic pigments in leaves and the formation of plant biomass were significantly expressed when plants were inoculated with adapted fungal populations of C. magnusianum and when they were further cultivated on substrates introduced with chromium and lead salts. Under these conditions, the fungal infection in plant roots was more intense compared to the use of the control population of the fungus. These facts indicate the more efficient partnership of the fungus C. magnusianum and the root system of plants under conditions that are extreme for plant life.