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Arbuscular mycorrhizas: physiology and function
Geoderma 104 Ž2001. 345–346 www.elsevier.comrlocatergeoderma
Book review Arbuscular mycorrhizas: physiology and function edited by Y. Kapulnik and D. Douds. Kluwer Academic Publishing, Dordrecht, 2000. Hardbound, ISBN 007923 64449. US$159
The number of papers published on Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Ž AMF. has been increasing over the past 25 years, as has the number of journals publishing these papers. It is becoming vital, therefore, that books such as this are produced to review major advances in AMF research but also to speculate on the future of AMF research. There have been many books that often comprise repeat versions of previous reviews by the same authors. What this book aims to do, principally, is present a series of ‘essay-style’ papers on various themes relating to the physiology and function of AMF but with some speculation on the way forward for further experimentation. The result is useful for young scientists entering the field of AMF research and more mature practitioners who wish to bring themselves up to date. Much effort is wasted in research on AMF via duplication of effort and the 15 chapters in this tome should point people to the best way forward rather than reinventing the wheel. Some of the reviews are, indeed, updates of previously published papers but their content makes them well worth including here in this context. My favourite papers include the first two by Miller and Jastrow and Koide whose ongoing research on the ecological role of AMF deserves praise. The former details the pivotal role played by AMF in stabilising soil structure while the latter relates fascinating information on the differences between the effects of AMF on annual and perennial plants in ecosystems. There are also good reviews of fungal development using novel techniques Ž Giovannetti. including mutant plant lines by Peterson et al. There is also an excellent review Ž Parke and Kaeppler. of plant genotyperAMF interactions highlighting the problems that plant breeding has inadvertently caused by reducing plant susceptibility to AMF colonisation in attempts to improve crop yields or reduce plant disease—the abstract should be copied and sent to all plant breeding programmes worldwide! Saito and Douds et al. review their own work on symbiotic exchange of nutrients and provide an overview of CrP transfer between plant and fungus. The different functions of intra-radical and extra-radical mycelium are made clear here but the fact that they can function uniquely in different species of glomalean genera is overlooked. The reviews of hormone balance Ž Ludwig–Muller ¨ . and stomatal bePII: S 0 0 1 6 - 7 0 6 1 Ž 0 1 . 0 0 0 6 4 - 7
346
Book reÕiew
haviour of AM plants ŽAuge. highlight the lack of real progress in these areas in the last decade. They are inherently very difficult research areas with many factors to isolate not least being the establishment of identical mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal plants. A little annoying are the generalisations made in the review of hormone balance, including the sweeping first line of the conclusion section which states ANot much is yet known on the regulation of root colonisation by AMFB —well actually it is—including P, light levels, and C allocation. A more thorough review process would have challenged such oversimplistic phraseology. The final two papers provide nice overviews of nutrition and plant tolerance of diseases which are the primary potential selling points of the commercial exploitation of AMF. Sadly, overregulation in the commercial products prevents AMF being more fully exploited with as biocontrol agents. The molecular biology based papers highlight the incredible progress being made by researchers around the world and the review by Lapopin and Franken on modifications of plant gene expression is a fascinating insight into how the plant changes in the presence of its fungal symbiont. I will finish this review by highlighting a few editorial criticisms. The scientific criticisms include a concentration on work undertaken on species of Glomus only, whereas it is clear that most natural ecosystems comprise species from across the genera. The other issues relate to the current trend towards faster and faster publication at the expense of presentation. There is a significant number of typographic errors and hence poor final editorial work including, Latin names should be in italics, missed references, standard formatting of papers, etc. Editors who gain prime coverage with their names on the front cover of such multi-authored tomes should accept the responsibility for keeping such errors to a minimum. The mystery of where reference 3 went on page 191 will haunt me forever! I will finish by recommending this book to anyone with a research team working on AMF. It will save much wasted and costly time in repeating already undertaken research and concentrate efforts on more innovative experimentation. John C. Dodd PlantWorks Ltd., 1 r 19 InnoÕation Building 1000, Sittingbourne Research Centre, Sittingbourne, Kent ME9 8HL, UK E-mail address: [email protected]
Book review Arbuscular mycorrhizas: physiology and function edited by Y. Kapulnik and D. Douds. Kluwer Academic Publishing, Dordrecht, 2000. Hardbound, ISBN 007923 64449. US$159
The number of papers published on Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi Ž AMF. has been increasing over the past 25 years, as has the number of journals publishing these papers. It is becoming vital, therefore, that books such as this are produced to review major advances in AMF research but also to speculate on the future of AMF research. There have been many books that often comprise repeat versions of previous reviews by the same authors. What this book aims to do, principally, is present a series of ‘essay-style’ papers on various themes relating to the physiology and function of AMF but with some speculation on the way forward for further experimentation. The result is useful for young scientists entering the field of AMF research and more mature practitioners who wish to bring themselves up to date. Much effort is wasted in research on AMF via duplication of effort and the 15 chapters in this tome should point people to the best way forward rather than reinventing the wheel. Some of the reviews are, indeed, updates of previously published papers but their content makes them well worth including here in this context. My favourite papers include the first two by Miller and Jastrow and Koide whose ongoing research on the ecological role of AMF deserves praise. The former details the pivotal role played by AMF in stabilising soil structure while the latter relates fascinating information on the differences between the effects of AMF on annual and perennial plants in ecosystems. There are also good reviews of fungal development using novel techniques Ž Giovannetti. including mutant plant lines by Peterson et al. There is also an excellent review Ž Parke and Kaeppler. of plant genotyperAMF interactions highlighting the problems that plant breeding has inadvertently caused by reducing plant susceptibility to AMF colonisation in attempts to improve crop yields or reduce plant disease—the abstract should be copied and sent to all plant breeding programmes worldwide! Saito and Douds et al. review their own work on symbiotic exchange of nutrients and provide an overview of CrP transfer between plant and fungus. The different functions of intra-radical and extra-radical mycelium are made clear here but the fact that they can function uniquely in different species of glomalean genera is overlooked. The reviews of hormone balance Ž Ludwig–Muller ¨ . and stomatal bePII: S 0 0 1 6 - 7 0 6 1 Ž 0 1 . 0 0 0 6 4 - 7
346
Book reÕiew
haviour of AM plants ŽAuge. highlight the lack of real progress in these areas in the last decade. They are inherently very difficult research areas with many factors to isolate not least being the establishment of identical mycorrhizal and non-mycorrhizal plants. A little annoying are the generalisations made in the review of hormone balance, including the sweeping first line of the conclusion section which states ANot much is yet known on the regulation of root colonisation by AMFB —well actually it is—including P, light levels, and C allocation. A more thorough review process would have challenged such oversimplistic phraseology. The final two papers provide nice overviews of nutrition and plant tolerance of diseases which are the primary potential selling points of the commercial exploitation of AMF. Sadly, overregulation in the commercial products prevents AMF being more fully exploited with as biocontrol agents. The molecular biology based papers highlight the incredible progress being made by researchers around the world and the review by Lapopin and Franken on modifications of plant gene expression is a fascinating insight into how the plant changes in the presence of its fungal symbiont. I will finish this review by highlighting a few editorial criticisms. The scientific criticisms include a concentration on work undertaken on species of Glomus only, whereas it is clear that most natural ecosystems comprise species from across the genera. The other issues relate to the current trend towards faster and faster publication at the expense of presentation. There is a significant number of typographic errors and hence poor final editorial work including, Latin names should be in italics, missed references, standard formatting of papers, etc. Editors who gain prime coverage with their names on the front cover of such multi-authored tomes should accept the responsibility for keeping such errors to a minimum. The mystery of where reference 3 went on page 191 will haunt me forever! I will finish by recommending this book to anyone with a research team working on AMF. It will save much wasted and costly time in repeating already undertaken research and concentrate efforts on more innovative experimentation. John C. Dodd PlantWorks Ltd., 1 r 19 InnoÕation Building 1000, Sittingbourne Research Centre, Sittingbourne, Kent ME9 8HL, UK E-mail address: [email protected]