Abstract

The aim of the present study was to analyze the effects of two arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), Funneliformis mosseae and Paraglomus occultum, on leaf water status, root morphology, root sugar accumulation, root abscisic acid (ABA) levels, root malondialdehyde (MDA) content, and root antioxidant enzyme activities in white clover (Trifolium repens L.) exposed to well-watered (WW) and drought stress (DS) conditions. The results showed that root colonization by F. mosseae and P. occultum was significantly decreased by 7-week soil drought treatment. Under drought stress conditions, mycorrhizal fungal treatment considerably stimulated root total length, surface area and volume, as compared with non-mycorrhizal controls. In addition, inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi also increased leaf relative water content and accelerated the accumulation of root glucose and fructose under drought stress. Mycorrhizal plants under drought stress registered higher activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and peroxidase (POD) and ABA levels in roots, while lower MDA contents, relative to non-mycorrhizal plants. As a result, mycorrhiza-inoculated plants represented better physiological activities (e.g. antioxidant defense systems, root morphology, and sugar accumulation) than non-inoculated plants in response to soil drought, whilst P. occultum had superior effects than F. mosseae.

Highlights

  • Soil drought is one of the severe abiotic stresses in the world, with global arid and semi-arid areas accounting for about 1/3 of the total land area (Kunert et al, 2016; Zou et al, 2020)

  • The aim of the present study was to analyze the effects of two arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), Funneliformis mosseae and Paraglomus occultum, on leaf water status, root morphology, root sugar accumulation, root abscisic acid (ABA) levels, root malondialdehyde (MDA) content, and root antioxidant enzyme activities in white clover (Trifolium repens L.) exposed to well-watered (WW) and drought stress (DS) conditions

  • The results showed that root colonization by F. mosseae and P. occultum was significantly decreased by 7-week soil drought treatment

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Summary

Introduction

Soil drought is one of the severe abiotic stresses in the world, with global arid and semi-arid areas accounting for about 1/3 of the total land area (Kunert et al, 2016; Zou et al, 2020). As an important environment for human survival, grasslands are characterized with a fragile ecosystem, and global warming reduced the water utilization efficiency of grasslands (Asner et al, 2004). Received in revised form: 08 Mar 2021. From Volume 49, Issue 1, 2021, Notulae Botanicae Horti Agrobotanici Cluj-Napoca journal will use article numbers in place of the traditional method of continuous pagination through the volume. The journal will continue to appear quarterly, as before, with four annual numbers

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