Isolation and Morphological Characterization of Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) from Riparian Zones of Southern Ecuador: A bioinoculants-production approach

Abstract

The distribution and identification of microorganisms in riparian areas in the Southern Region of Ecuador have not been studied so far. For this reason, this research has focused on the isolation and morphological characterization of spore morphotypes of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). AMF constitute a group of microorganisms with important ecological and economic relevance. The AMF establish obligate symbiotic association with about 80% of terrestrial plants. Most of the cases correspond to mutualistic associations (although in a limited number of reports negative effects on plants have been observed). Being a mutualist symbiosis, the two partners involved benefit. On the one hand, HMA provides plants with a greater capacity to absorb water and nutrients from the soil. On the other hand, AMFs obtain part of the carbohydrates from the plant. AMF inhabit all types of soils around the world. Several AMF spores were found in riparian zones of the micro watersheds of El Carmen and Mónica which, according to their morphological characteristics, were grouped in various morphotypes and genera. The found genera were mainly Glomus, Acaulospora and Scutellospora. The spores were used as propagules for the inoculation of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum Mill) seedlings. The inoculation produced a significant effect on plants-growth, biomass and fruit weight variables compared to non-inoculated plants. This AMF have a great potential for the development of efficient bioinoculants or microbial inocula for agricultural purposes.