Analysis of mutualistic symbiotic associations between arbuscular mycorrhizae and native forest species of the Atlantic Forest

• Grant number: 23/16358-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: March 01, 2024
• End date: February 28, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Forestry Resources and Forestry Engineering - Nature Conservation
• Principal Investigator: Fernando Dini Andreote
• Grantee: Ana Paula Pereira
• Host Institution: Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz (ESALQ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Piracicaba , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Mycorrhizae are symbiotic associations between the roots of vascular plants and fungi. Mycorrhizae have the ability to act as extenders of plant roots, increasing the volume of soil explored in order to improve the nutritional and physiological state of the plant. In this way, mycorrhizae play an important role in the maintenance and recovery of threatened biomes. The Atlantic Forest biome is of great importance due to its great biodiversity and is a hotspot for conservation. Restoring the Atlantic Forest is one of the ways to recover biodiversity above and below ground, and mycorrhizae can play a key role in ensuring the success of this activity. The aim of this study is to evaluate the symbiotic association between three species of arbuscular mycorrhizae and three forest species of environmental interest in the Atlantic Forest region. To this end, an experiment will be conducted in a greenhouse, in a completely randomized design, with the following treatments: three forest species (Piptadenia gonoacantha (Pau-jacaré); Peltophorum dubium (Canafístula); and Hymenaea courbaril (Jatobá) inoculated with three species of mycorrhizal fungi (Scutellospora heterogama, Rhizophagus clarus, and Gigaspora rósea), as well as a control without inoculation. Each treatment will have 10 replicates. The results will be evaluated 150 days after inoculation, where the following parameters will be assessed: height, diameter at neck height, aerial and root biomass, percentage of colonized roots and easily extractable glomalin.