Applied Soil Ecology 14 2000 201–211
Effectiveness of indigenous and non-indigenous isolates of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in soils from degraded
ecosystems and man-made habitats
Batkhuugyin Enkhtuya
∗
, Jana Rydlová, Miroslav Vosátka
Institute of Botany, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, 252 43 Pru
◦
honice, Czech Republic Received 19 April 1999; received in revised form 2 March 2000; accepted 6 March 2000
Abstract
Culturing in soils from degraded ecosystems significantly influenced the effectiveness of indigenous arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi AMF isolated from disturbed and undisturbed soils. The AMF isolates from degraded or artificially created habitats
acid rain polluted site, power station fly ash deposits, spoil banks, pyrite deposit, were not, in most cases, more effective than those from undisturbed soils, when grown in symbiosis with maize in the disturbed soils. Significant effects of soil or
substrate on plant growth were found, while the influence of the AMF inoculant was much less pronounced. The development of AMF isolates was reduced in soils with more adverse chemical properties irrespective of the isolate origin. The length of
extraradical mycelium of AMF and NADH-diaphorase activity of the mycelium were good indicators of negative effects of stress factors in the soil. © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Glomus; Heavy metals; Mycorrhiza; Soil contamination; Soil disturbance
1. Introduction
Serious ecological problems have arisen due to exploitation of natural resources in Central Europe,
particularly in the northwestern part of the Czech Republic, which is one of the most polluted areas in
Europe. It is a part of the area called ‘Black Triangle’ — the region where several anthropogenic stress fac-
tors combine to cause degradation of natural ecosys- tems and also the establishment of man-made habitats
with very unfavorable conditions for plant growth. The most serious problem is the effect of air pollu-
tion on mountain forest, which is caused by burning
∗
Corresponding author. Tel.: +42-02-6775-0022; fax: +42-02-6775-0022.
E-mail address: batkhuuibot.cas.cz B. Enkhtuya
highly sulfurous brown coal by power stations. As a consequence of emissions, drastic changes occur in
the soil chemistry leading to lowered soil pH. Acid- ification processes induce aluminum and manganese
toxicity and a shortage of calcium and magnesium which cause nutrient imbalances and depletion of
populations of soil microorganisms Esher et al., 1992. Mining of the coal leads to the establishment of
spoil banks. These are composed of materials mined from depths of about 200 m, mostly Miocene clays
with unfavorable physical properties such as liability to erosion, low drainage ability, and dry or hypoxic
conditions. Sedimentation ponds for power station fly ash are a type of artificial habitat with mostly alkaline
substrates and adverse physical properties such as low water-holding capacity. Another type of sedimen-
tation pond is that for waste from pyrite processing.
0929-139300 – see front matter © 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 9 2 9 - 1 3 9 3 0 0 0 0 0 5 7 - 3
202 B. Enkhtuya et al. Applied Soil Ecology 14 2000 201–211
Substrates in these waste disposal sites show high concentrations of toxic heavy metals such as Mn, Fe
and Al, high salinity and pH fluctuations. Successful survival and growth of plants in soils
degraded by industrial activity is greatly dependent not only upon the abiotic properties of the soil but
also on the activity of microbial populations Visser, 1985. The presence of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi
AMF may reduce negative effects of stresses caused by lack of nutrients or organic matter, by adverse soil
structure, extreme pH or by pathogens Sylvia and Williams, 1992. AMF can also enhance the resis-
tance of plants to drought stress and high salinity due to the increased absorption zone of mycorrhizal roots
Hardie, 1985. An important feature of AMF might be a protective role of mycorrhiza against stress in-
duced by high concentrations of heavy metals Galli et al., 1994. Schuepp et al. 1987 have postulated
that AMF can serve as a filtration barrier against trans- fer of heavy metals to the plant shoots. Better P nu-
trition and increase in plant biomass have also been proposed as possible reasons for a higher tolerance to
heavy metals Haselwandter et al., 1994. However, different populations or geographical isolates of AMF
were found to show high variability in their tolerance to heavy metals and associated stress Leyval et al.,
1991; Weissenhorn et al., 1993; Bartolome-Esteban and Schenck, 1994.
Elimination of AMF populations leads to prob- lems with plant establishment and survival Pfleger
et al., 1994. Even if AMF are ubiquitous in terres- trial ecosystems, mechanical or chemical disturbance
of the soil can substantially reduce AMF population vigor and functioning Sylvia and Williams, 1992.
Numbers of spores and root colonization are often reduced by soil disturbance Waaland and Allen,
1987, but AMF isolates adapted to local soil con- ditions are still able to stimulate plant growth at
that site compared with non-indigenous isolates. It seems probable that such AMF ecotypes result from
long-term adaptation to soils with extreme properties Sylvia and Williams, 1992. Isolation of indigenous
and presumably stress-adapted AMF is a potential biotechnological tool for inoculation of plants in dis-
turbed ecosystems Dodd and Thompson, 1994. The isolation and study of these ‘stress-tolerant’ isolates
might contribute to knowledge of the ecophysiology of AMF under stress conditions.
The aim of the present study was to study the effec- tiveness of indigenous AMF isolates from disturbed
soils and non-indigenous isolates from undisturbed soils in symbiosis with maize a model universal host
plant for AMF growing in disturbed soils.
2. Materials and methods
