Effects of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on Growth and Physiological Performance of <i>Catalpa bungei</i> C.A.Mey. under Drought Stress
<em>Catalpa bungei</em> C.A.Mey. is a common ornamental timber species. Its survival and growth are greatly affected by water scarcity in arid and semi-arid areas of Northwest China. Evidence suggests arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus (AMF) may improve plant drought resistance. However, ther...
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MDPI AG
2020-10-01
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| Series: | Forests |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/11/10/1117 |
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| author | Wei Chen Panpan Meng Huan Feng Chunyan Wang |
| author_facet | Wei Chen Panpan Meng Huan Feng Chunyan Wang |
| author_sort | Wei Chen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <em>Catalpa bungei</em> C.A.Mey. is a common ornamental timber species. Its survival and growth are greatly affected by water scarcity in arid and semi-arid areas of Northwest China. Evidence suggests arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus (AMF) may improve plant drought resistance. However, there is limited information on the systematic effects of AMF on drought resistance in <em>C. bungei</em> seedlings. Here, a pot experiment was used to explore the effects of inoculation with the AMF <em>Rhizophagus intraradices</em> on the growth and physiological performance of <em>C. bungei</em> under different water treatment conditions. Three water levels and two mycorrhizal inoculation treatments were used with factorial design. The results showed that drought stress noticeably affected the growth and physiological performance of <em>C. bungei</em> seedlings. However, inoculation with <em>R</em>.<em> intraradices</em> significantly ameliorated the growth, and alleviated the effects of drought stress. The growth parameters of AMF-inoculated seedlings significantly increased regardless of water status. AMF changed the biomass allocation in seedlings by reducing the root mass ratio (RMR) and root/shoot ratio. AMF-inoculated seedlings displayed higher gas exchange parameters, photosynthetic pigment concentrations, specific leaf area (SLA), but lower specific leaf weight (SLW), regardless of water status. AMF alleviated drought-induced oxidative stress by attenuating the excess generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), especially H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> and O<sub>2</sub><sup>−</sup>, in leaves. Inoculation with AMF under drought stress also dramatically augmented indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and gibberellins (GA<sub>3</sub>) levels and the IAA/abscisic acid (ABA) and GA<sub>3</sub>/ABA ratios, but reduced ABA and zeatin (ZT) levels in leaves. AMF symbiosis improved root morphology and promoted the absorption of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in seedlings. We conclude that inoculation with <em>R. intraradices</em> is potentially useful for afforestation and cultivation of <em>C. bungei</em> in Northwest China. Furthermore, AMF improved soil structure by increasing the glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP) contents and the proportion of macro-aggregates (0.25–0.5 mm) in the rhizosphere soil. |
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| spelling | doaj.art-0e3afdea533f4e49835fc39bf3e75abe2023-11-20T17:52:46ZengMDPI AGForests1999-49072020-10-011110111710.3390/f11101117Effects of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on Growth and Physiological Performance of <i>Catalpa bungei</i> C.A.Mey. under Drought StressWei Chen0Panpan Meng1Huan Feng2Chunyan Wang3College of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, ChinaCollege of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, ChinaCollege of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, ChinaCollege of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China<em>Catalpa bungei</em> C.A.Mey. is a common ornamental timber species. Its survival and growth are greatly affected by water scarcity in arid and semi-arid areas of Northwest China. Evidence suggests arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus (AMF) may improve plant drought resistance. However, there is limited information on the systematic effects of AMF on drought resistance in <em>C. bungei</em> seedlings. Here, a pot experiment was used to explore the effects of inoculation with the AMF <em>Rhizophagus intraradices</em> on the growth and physiological performance of <em>C. bungei</em> under different water treatment conditions. Three water levels and two mycorrhizal inoculation treatments were used with factorial design. The results showed that drought stress noticeably affected the growth and physiological performance of <em>C. bungei</em> seedlings. However, inoculation with <em>R</em>.<em> intraradices</em> significantly ameliorated the growth, and alleviated the effects of drought stress. The growth parameters of AMF-inoculated seedlings significantly increased regardless of water status. AMF changed the biomass allocation in seedlings by reducing the root mass ratio (RMR) and root/shoot ratio. AMF-inoculated seedlings displayed higher gas exchange parameters, photosynthetic pigment concentrations, specific leaf area (SLA), but lower specific leaf weight (SLW), regardless of water status. AMF alleviated drought-induced oxidative stress by attenuating the excess generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), especially H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> and O<sub>2</sub><sup>−</sup>, in leaves. Inoculation with AMF under drought stress also dramatically augmented indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) and gibberellins (GA<sub>3</sub>) levels and the IAA/abscisic acid (ABA) and GA<sub>3</sub>/ABA ratios, but reduced ABA and zeatin (ZT) levels in leaves. AMF symbiosis improved root morphology and promoted the absorption of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in seedlings. We conclude that inoculation with <em>R. intraradices</em> is potentially useful for afforestation and cultivation of <em>C. bungei</em> in Northwest China. Furthermore, AMF improved soil structure by increasing the glomalin-related soil protein (GRSP) contents and the proportion of macro-aggregates (0.25–0.5 mm) in the rhizosphere soil.https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/11/10/1117<i>Rhizophagus intraradices</i><i>Catalpa bungei</i>growth parametersphysiological performanceroot morphologysoil aggregates |
| spellingShingle | Wei Chen Panpan Meng Huan Feng Chunyan Wang Effects of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on Growth and Physiological Performance of <i>Catalpa bungei</i> C.A.Mey. under Drought Stress Forests <i>Rhizophagus intraradices</i> <i>Catalpa bungei</i> growth parameters physiological performance root morphology soil aggregates |
| title | Effects of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on Growth and Physiological Performance of <i>Catalpa bungei</i> C.A.Mey. under Drought Stress |
| title_full | Effects of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on Growth and Physiological Performance of <i>Catalpa bungei</i> C.A.Mey. under Drought Stress |
| title_fullStr | Effects of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on Growth and Physiological Performance of <i>Catalpa bungei</i> C.A.Mey. under Drought Stress |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on Growth and Physiological Performance of <i>Catalpa bungei</i> C.A.Mey. under Drought Stress |
| title_short | Effects of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on Growth and Physiological Performance of <i>Catalpa bungei</i> C.A.Mey. under Drought Stress |
| title_sort | effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi on growth and physiological performance of i catalpa bungei i c a mey under drought stress |
| topic | <i>Rhizophagus intraradices</i> <i>Catalpa bungei</i> growth parameters physiological performance root morphology soil aggregates |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4907/11/10/1117 |
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