Whether conservation management can coordinate root

The gap

Evidence profile

Sourced from the abstract and future work and stated research gap and future-work section of the source papers, classified as general, drawn from work published between 2024 and 2026, spanning 7 journals. Those papers have been cited 33 times in total.

Supporting evidence — 8 representative gaps

• Nitrogen addition alters arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and soil bacteria networks without promoting phosphorus mineralization in a semiarid grassland (2025) · Communications Biology · cited 17× · doi

  Mycorrhiza interplays with the microbiome in adaptation to environmental fluctuation, yet how arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and the associated microbiome respond to nitrogen addition remains poorly understood.

  generalabstract
  Keywords: microbiome mycorrhiza interplays adaptation environmental fluctuation arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi associated respond nitrogen addition remains poorly
• Breeding for beneficial microbial associations (2026) · Nature Communications · doi

  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-76260-6 24. Martín-Robles, N. et al. Impacts of domestication on the arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis of 27 crop species. N. Phytol. 218, 322–334 (2018). 46. 25. Meyer, R. S. & Purugganan, M. D. Evolution of crop species: 47. 27. 26. genetics of domestication and diversification. Nat. Rev. Genet. 14, 840–852 (2013). Sawers, R. J. H., Ramírez-Flores, M. R., Olalde-Portugal, V. & Paszkowski, U. The impact of domestication and crop improvement on arbuscular mycorrhizal symbiosis in cereals: insights from genetics and genomics. N. Phytol. 220, 1135–1140 (2018). Porter, S. S. & Sachs, J. L. Agriculture and the disruption of plant–microbial symbiosis. Trends Ecol. Evol. 35, 426–439 (2020). 28. Galindo-Castañeda, T., Hartmann, M. & Lynch, J. P. Location: root architecture structures rhizosphere microbial associations. J. Exp. Bot. 75, 594–604 (2024). Tang, B. et al. Mycorrhization enhances plant growth and stabilizes biomass allocation under drought. Glob. Chang. Biol. 30, e17438 (2024). 29. 30. Rog, I. et al. Impact of plant breeding on the responsiveness of maize and wheat varieties to an arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal symbiont. Plant People Planet https://doi.org/10.1002/ppp3. 70219 (2026). Lutz, S. et al. Soil microbiome indicators can predict crop growth response to large-scale inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi. Nat. Microbiol. 8, 2277–2289 (2023). 31. 32. Qin, Z. et al. Soil phosphorus availability modifies the relationship between AM fungal diversity and mycorrhizal benefits to maize in an agricultural soil. Soil Biol. Biochem. 144, 107790 (2020). 33. Guzman, A. et al. Arbuscular mycorrhizal interactions and nutrient 34. supply mediate floral trait variation and pollinator visitation. N. Phytol. 245, 406–419 (2025). Su, P. et al. Microbiome homeostasis on rice leaves is regulated by a precursor molecule of lignin biosynthesis. Nat. Commun. 15, 23 (2024). 35. He, X. et al. Heritable microbiome variation is correlated with 36. 37. 38. source environment in locally adapted maize varieties. Nat. Plants 10, 598–617 (2024). Beckers, B. et al. Lignin engineering in field-grown poplar trees affects the endosphere bacterial microbiome. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 113, 2312–2317 (2016). Stringlis, I. A. et al. MYB72-dependent coumarin exudation shapes root microbiome assembly to promote plant health. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 115, (2018). Escudero-Martinez, C. et al. Identifying plant genes shaping microbiota composition in the barley rhizosphere. Nat. Commun. 13, 3443 (2022). 39. Oyserman, B. O. et al. Disentangling the genetic basis of rhizosphere microbiome assembly in tomato. Nat. Commun. 13, 3228 (2022). 40. Chari, N. R. et al. Estimating the global root exudate carbon flux. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. Biogeochemistry 167, 895–908 (2024). Liu, H. et al. Evidence for the plant recruitment of beneficial microbes to suppress soil-borne pathogens. N. Phytol. 229, 2873–2885 (2021).

  generalfuture workevidence 5/5
  Keywords: plant mycorrhizal microbiome soil crop phytol arbuscular domestication symbiosis root maize commun https species genetics
• Breeding for beneficial microbial associations (2026) · Nature Communications · doi

  https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-76260-6 69. 70. 71. Salomon, M. J. et al. Establishing a quality management frame- work for commercial inoculants containing arbuscular mycor- rhizal fungi. iScience 25, 104636 (2022). Koziol, L., McKenna, T. P. & Bever, J. D. Meta-analysis reveals globally sourced commercial mycorrhizal inoculants fall short. N. Phytol. 246, 821–827 (2024). Xu, X., Dinesen, C., Pioppi, A., Kovács, Á. T. & Lozano-Andrade, C. N. Composing a microbial symphony: synthetic communities for promoting plant growth. Trends Microbiol. 246, 821–827 (2025). 72. Northen, T. R. et al. Community standards and future opportu- nities for synthetic communities in plant–microbiota research. Nat. Microbiol. 9, 2774–2784 (2024). 73. Mehlferber, E. C. et al. A cross-systems primer for synthetic microbial communities. Nat. Microbiol. 9, 2765–2773 (2024). 75. 76. 74. Chesneau, G., Herpell, J., Garrido-Oter, R. & Hacquard, S. From synthetic communities to synthetic ecosystems: exploring caus- alities in plant–microbe–environment interactions. N. Phytol. 245, 496–502 (2025). Ruan, Z. et al. Engineering natural microbiomes toward enhanced bioremediation by microbiome modeling. Nat. Commun. 15, 4694 (2024). Durán, P., Vailleau, F. & Roux, F. Building microbial synthetic communities: get inspired by the design of synthetic plant com- munities. New Phytol. 246, 402–405 (2025). Becker, C. et al. The ecologically relevant genetics of plant–plant interactions. Trends Plant Sci. 28, 31–42 (2023). Bashan, Y., de-Bashan, L. E., Prabhu, S. R. & Hernandez, J.-P. Advances in plant growth-promoting bacterial inoculant tech- nology: formulations and practical perspectives (1998–2013). Plant Soil 378, 1–33 (2014). Rog, I. et al. Mycorrhizal inoculation success depends on soil health and crop productivity. FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 372, fnaf031 (2025). 79. 78. 77. 80. Van Der Heijden, M. G. A. et al. Mycorrhizal fungal diversity 81. 82. determines plant biodiversity, ecosystem variability and pro- ductivity. Nature 396, 69–72 (1998). Verbruggen, E., van der Heijden, M. G. A., Rillig, M. C. & Kiers, E. T. Mycorrhizal fungal establishment in agricultural soils: factors determining inoculation success. N. Phytol. 197, 1104–1109 (2013). Verbruggen, E., Van Der Heijden, M. G. A., Weedon, J. T., Kowal- chuk, G. A. & Röling, W. F. M. Community assembly, species richness and nestedness of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi in agri- cultural soils. Mol. Ecol. 21, 2341–2353 (2012). 91. 92. improving plant–microbe interactions. J. Exp. Bot. 63, 3429–3444 (2012). Dixon, R. A. & Steele, C. L. Flavonoids and isoflavonoids–a gold mine for metabolic engineering. Trends Plant Sci. 4, 394–400 (1999). Popovici, J. et al. Differential effects of rare specific flavonoids on compatible and incompatible strains in the Myrica gale-Frankia actinorhizal symbiosis. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 76, 2451–2460 (2010). 93. Mendoza-Suárez, M., Akyol, T. Y., Nadzieja, M. & Andersen, S. U. 94. 95.

  generalfuture workevidence 5/5
  Keywords: plant synthetic mycorrhizal communities microbiol phytol microbial trends interactions heijden commercial inoculants arbuscular fungi promoting
• Bio–Tillage Mediated by Root–AMF Synergy Promotes the Amelioration of the Compacted Soil Environment and Soybean Growth Under Conservation Management (2026) · Agronomy · doi

  Whether conservation management can coordinate root adaptation and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal (AMF) responses to ameliorate the compacted soil environment and improve crop growth remains unclear.

  generalabstractevidence 5/5
  Keywords: whether conservation management coordinate root adaptation arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal responses ameliorate compacted soil environment improve
• Review: roles of mycorrhizal symbioses and associated soil microbiomes in ecological restoration (2025) · Frontiers in Microbiology · cited 16× · doi

  The paper does not explicitly state the research gap in bullets. However, it implies that there is a need to understand the roles of mycorrhizal symbioses in ecological restoration. The paper also implies that there is a lack of knowledge on the efficiency and specificities of various soil microbial constituents in association with AMF.

  generalstated research gapevidence 5/5
  Keywords: paper does explicitly state research gap bullets however
• Fatty acid signatures distinguish autotrophy, partial mycoheterotrophy, and full mycoheterotrophy in angiosperms (2026) · Mycorrhiza · doi

  Establishing how widespread partial mycoheterotrophy is among green plants is important for understanding the ecology and evolution of mycorrhizal symbioses. Further research is needed to distinguish transfer through common mycorrhizal networks from alternative pathways. Investigating the mechanisms underlying the observed differentiation in fatty acid composition.

  generalfuture-work sectionevidence 4/5
  Keywords: establishing widespread partial mycoheterotrophy among green plants important
• Influence of mycorrhizal fungi on plant growth and rhizosphere soil microbiome of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) (2026) · Acta Scientiarum Polonorum Hortorum Cultus · doi

  The specific effect of mycorrhizal inoculum on tomato plant growth and rhizosphere soil microbiome is not well understood. There is a need to study the effects of mycorrhizal fungi on tomato plants under different environmental conditions.

  generalstated research gapevidence 3/5
  Keywords: specific effect mycorrhizal inoculum tomato plant growth rhizosphere
• Interaction of Claroideoglomus claroideum co-inoculation with saprophytic phosphofungi: effect on the development of micropropagated native potato plantlets (2024) · Revista Chapingo Serie Horticultura · doi

  The interaction between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and saprophytic fungi in agricultural crops is not well understood. The potential benefits of co-inoculation for sustainable agriculture are not well explored.

  generalstated research gapevidence 3/5
  Keywords: interaction between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi saprophytic agricultural crops

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