Arbuscular mycorrhizal dialogues: do you speak ‘plantish’ or ‘fungish’?

• Published in: Trends in plant science 2015-03, Vol.20 (3), p.150-154
• Main Authors: Bonfante, Paola, Genre, Andrea
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi; chitin; cutin monomers; Glomeromycota - growth & development; Glomeromycota - physiology; Mycorrhizae - growth & development; Mycorrhizae - physiology; Plant Development - physiology; Plants - microbiology; receptors; signal molecules; Signal Transduction; strigolactones; Symbiosis
• ISSN: 1360-1385; 1878-4372
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tplants.2014.12.002

•Plants rely on their associated microbiota for crucial physiological activities.•We focus on the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis that involves the Glomeromycota fungi.•We propose that the molecules involved in inter-kingdom symbiotic signaling have key roles originally unrelated to symbiosis.•Thus, the symbiotic role of these molecules relies on the co-evolved capacity of the AM partners to perceive and interpret them as symbiotic signals. Plants rely on their associated microbiota for crucial physiological activities; realization of this interaction drives research to understand inter-domain communication. This opinion article focuses on the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis, which involves the Glomeromycota, fungi that can form a symbiosis with most plants. Here we propose the hypothesis that the molecules involved in inter-kingdom symbiotic signaling, such as strigolactones, cutin monomers, and chitin-related molecules, also have key roles in development, originally unrelated to symbiosis. Thus, the symbiotic role of these molecules relies on the co-evolved capacity of the AM partners to perceive and interpret them as symbiotic signals.