| Material
on the surface of hyphalwalls of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) during
active colonization of plant roots was detected by a monoclonal antibody.
Pot-cultured isolates of Glomus, Acaulospora, Gigaspora,
Scutellospora, and Entrophospora had immunofluorescent material
(IM) on younger, thinner, intact hyphae, but IM was scant to absent on thicker,
melanized or Iysing hyphae. Colonization of corn (Zea mays L.),
Sudangrass (Sorghum sudanense (Piper) Staph.) or red clover (Trifolium
pratense L.) was examined during 5 months of plant growth by removing
cores and performing an indirect immunoassay on roots with attached hyphae.
Fresh spores of some Glomus spp. had IM on the outer layer of the
spore wall. Abundant IM was seen on root hairs of plants colonized by some
isolates, and some IM was detected on root surfaces of all plants examined
even during early colonization. After cultures were dried, hyphae, roots
and spores had little to no IM. Uninoculated control roots had very rare,
small patches of IM. An immunoreactive protein was extracted from hyphae
of Gigaspora and Glomus isolates by using 20 mM citrate
(pH 7.0) at 121 °C for 90 min. Gel electrophoresis profiles indicated that
all isolates tested had the same banding patterns. Lectin-binding of extracted
protein is suggestive of a glycoprotein. The immunofluorescence assay can
be used to examine root sections for active colonization by AMF, and the
potential use of the protein to quantify AMF activity in soil is discussed. |
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