Plant–fungal interactions: What triggers the fungi to switch among lifestyles?

Abstract

Up till now various plant-fungal interactions have been extensively studied in the form of mycorrhizal, parasitic or endophytic lifestyles. Many of those interactions are beneficial to the host plants and a few are detrimental. Several investigations have pointed towards the interconversion of one fungal lifestyle into another while interact the plant system meaning endophyte may become parasite or vice versa. In such case, it is necessary to realize whether these different lifestyles are interconnected at some points either by physiological, biochemical or molecular routes and to identify the factors that trigger the change in fungal lifestyle, which is entirely different than earlier one and affects the host plant significantly. This review highlights the possible mechanisms of switching among the lifestyles of fungi based on recent findings and discusses the factors affecting plant fungal interactions. It also underlines the need for studying this important facet of plant-fungal interactions in depth which may in future help to fetch more advantages and to avoid the severe consequences in agriculture and other related fields.

Fungal endophytes promote the accumulation of Amaryllidaceae alkaloids in Lycoris radiata

“…The interaction between plants and endophytes has been described as a balanced symbiotic continuum ranging from mutualism through commensalism to latent pathogenicity (Schulz and Boyle, 2005). Fungal lifestyles could change in response to host internal signals or environmental factors (Rai and Agarkar, 2014). As expected, some fungal endophytes isolated in L. radiata have been reported as latent pathogens in other plants, such as members in the genera Fusarium, Phyllosticta, Colletotrichum, Phoma and Diaporthe (Biggs, 1995;Rodriguez and Redman, 2008;Wikee et al, 2013;Demers et al, 2015;Sessa et al, 2018).…”

“…The interaction between plants and endophytes has been described as a balanced symbiotic continuum ranging from mutualism through commensalism to latent pathogenicity (Schulz and Boyle, ). Fungal lifestyles could change in response to host internal signals or environmental factors (Rai and Agarkar, ). As expected, some fungal endophytes isolated in L .…”

Endophytic fungi harbored in Panax notoginseng : diversity and potential as biological control agents against host plant pathogens of root-rot disease

“…It has also been confirmed that the pathogenic–endophytic lifestyles of some fungi are interchangeable [61], [62]. These phenomena are caused by many factors, such as environment changes, chemical inducers, and molecular and genetic bases [63], [64]. Groups of fungal phytopathogens also contain large numbers of endophytic taxa.…”

Characterization of community structure of culturable endophytic fungi in sweet cherry composite trees and their growth-retarding effect against pathogens

“…The roles of endophytic fungi and their physiological effects on the host plants range from mutualistic, protective action to pathogenic potential [31,19]. It has been suggested that endophytic fungi confer resistance to plant pathogens by direct and/or indirect inhibition of pathogenic microorganisms and by ecological effects [27,45].…”