Mechanism that can Increase Natural Uptake of Nutrients in Plant Discovered

Scientists from the Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research (BTI) at Cornell University have identified plant proteins that regulate the interaction between a beneficial fungus and plant roots that is effective in helping plants to thrive during nutrient poor conditions. This process could reduce too much use of synthetic fertilizers in agriculture.

In this interaction, referred to as arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis, the fungus develops highly branched tree-like structures, called arbuscules (from the Latin arbusculum meaning "small tree"), in the root cells. The research team analyzed mutants of a legume plant (Medicago truncatula) to show that proteins called DELLAs are essential for arbuscule formation. When gibberellin levels rise, DELLA proteins are deactivated and the plant grows.

Through a series of experiments, the researchers showed that gibberellin prevents arbuscule formation, and the plants containing mutant dominant DELLA proteins are not deactivated. This continue to promote arbuscule formation through interaction with a second set of the signaling proteins that control the symbiosis.

See BTI's news release at http://bti.cornell.edu/della-proteins-regulate-arbuscule-formation-in-arbuscular-mycorrhizal-symbiosis/#more-7763.