Harnessing plant-to-plant signalling via common mycorrhizal networks for enhanced community-level resistance in crops.
Lee SJ, Wang L, Orlovskis Z
Summary
PubMedWhy it matters This matters because the vegetables and grains you eat could one day be grown with far fewer pesticides if farmers learn to cultivate the underground fungal networks that help plants share immune warnings with their neighbors.
Beneath the soil, plants are linked by threads of fungi that act like a living internet, passing chemical alarm signals from one plant to another when pests or diseases attack. Scientists are now uncovering the specific molecular messages — including tiny snippets of genetic material — that travel through these fungal highways to put neighboring plants on alert. If farmers can tap into this natural communication system, they may be able to grow fields of crops that collectively fight off disease the way a well-coordinated community looks out for one another.
chevron_right Technical Details
Plants can warn each other about pest and disease attacks through underground fungal networks that connect their roots. This review explores how these 'wood wide web' connections work at a molecular level and how farmers could use them to build crops that defend themselves collectively.
Key Findings
Common mycorrhizal networks (fungal threads connecting plant roots) can transmit defense signals between plants, expanding the known scope of plant immune communication beyond within-plant responses like systemic acquired resistance.
Small RNA molecules are identified as candidate molecular signals that may travel through fungal networks to trigger immune responses in neighboring, uninfected plants.
The authors propose reframing crops as interconnected communities rather than isolated individuals, opening a path toward sustainable agroecosystem designs that leverage natural fungal networks to reduce reliance on pesticides.
Abstract Preview
Inter-plant signals can be transmitted via plant volatiles or exudates as well as through biological connections such as parasitic plants and common mycorrhizal networks (CMN), formed by mycorrhiza...
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