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Towards understanding the impact of mycorrhizal fungal environments on the functioning of terrestrial ecosystems

Summary

Mycorrhizal fungi form partnerships with plant roots and profoundly influence soil health and carbon storage. Different types of these fungi (arbuscular, ectomycorrhizal, and ericoid) work differently and create distinct soil environments with varying impacts on nutrient availability and carbon cycling. Researchers have now developed a unified framework and an experimental system to better understand and measure these effects, which could improve our ability to manage soils and predict ecosystem responses to environmental changes.

Background

Mycorrhizas are mutualistic relationships between plants and soil fungi that control carbon and nutrient fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems. Different mycorrhizal types create distinct soil environments with varying impacts on ecosystem functioning. Current understanding of these impacts remains fragmented across multiple domains of soil biogeochemistry.

Objective

To propose a conceptual framework of mycorrhizal fungal environments (MyFE) and identify knowledge gaps related to understanding and quantifying mycorrhizal fungal impacts on soil functioning. To introduce an experimental framework and the Mycotron field experiment to quantitatively assess how different mycorrhizal types influence ecosystem functions.

Results

The analysis identifies four major knowledge gaps regarding mycorrhizal impacts on soil biogeochemical cycles: mycorrhizal mycelial carbon pools, carbon release from roots, microbial community mediation, and mineral weathering effects. The MyFE framework reveals distinct mechanisms by which AM, ECM, and ERM fungi influence soil carbon and nutrient cycles through differential carbon allocation, enzyme expression, exudation patterns, and microbial recruitment.

Conclusion

The MyFE framework provides a systems-level approach to understanding mycorrhizal influences on ecosystem functioning, integrating knowledge across soil compartments. Implementation through the Mycotron experiment and similar studies can address critical knowledge gaps and improve predictions of soil carbon and nutrient dynamics under varying environmental conditions and mycorrhizal community compositions.
  • Published in:FEMS Microbiology Ecology,
  • Study Type:Review and Experimental Framework,
  • Source: PMID: 40512519, DOI: 10.1093/femsec/fiaf062
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