2024/04/06 by Lotus Lofgren, Nhu Nguyen, Peter G. Kennedy +13 · 1 voice · 2 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Environmental Science · #Mycorrhizal Fungi and Plant Interactions #Forest Ecology and Biodiversity Studies #Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics Studies
paper · pdf · doi:10.1111/nph.19700
openalex publication_date 2024/04/06 · openalex created_date 2024/04/07 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Research on mycorrhizal symbiosis has been slowed by a lack of established study systems. To address this challenge, we have been developing Suillus, a widespread ecologically and economically relevant fungal genus primarily associated with the plant family Pinaceae, into a model system for studying ectomycorrhizal (ECM) associations. Over the last decade, we have compiled extensive genomic resources, culture libraries, a phenotype database, and protocols for manipulating Suillus fungi with and without their tree partners. Our efforts have already resulted in a large number of publicly available genomes, transcriptomes, and respective annotations, as well as advances in our understanding of mycorrhizal partner specificity and host communication, fungal and plant nutrition, environmental adaptation, soil nutrient cycling, interspecific competition, and biological invasions. Here, we highlight the most significant recent findings enabled by Suillus, present a suite of protocols for working with the genus, and discuss how Suillus is emerging as an important model to elucidate the ecology and evolution of ECM interactions.