Do shifts of mycorrhizal fungi provide the evolution of parasitism in plants?

2017 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 15H04417
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Biodiversity/Systematics
• Research Institution: National Museum of Nature and Science, Tokyo
• Principal Investigator: Yukawa Tomohisa 独立行政法人国立科学博物館, 植物研究部, グループ長 (50280524)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 大和 政秀 千葉大学, 教育学部, 准教授 (00571788) ; 辻田 有紀 佐賀大学, 農学部, 准教授 (80522523)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): TSUTSUMI Chie 独立行政法人国立科学博物館, 植物研究部, 研究主幹 (30455422)
• Research Collaborator: YAGAME Takahiro
• Project Period (FY): 2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
• Keywords: 菌根 / 進化 / 共生 / 寄生 / 従属栄養 / 光合成 / 植物 / 菌類

Outline of Final Research Achievements

We explored causes of the evolution of mycoheterotrophy in plants. First, changes of mycobionts were analyzed for several clades including both autotrophic and mycoheterotrophic plant species. The results showed that convergence towards particular mycobionts occurred in association with the evolution of mycoheterotrophy in plants. Further, the results of co-culture experiments between plants and their mycorrhizal fungi demonstrated that particular mycobionts can function as efficient nutrition suppliers. Consequently, validity of the hypothesis “mycoheterotrophy evolved in accordance with selection and adaptation of plants to fungi that can optimize nutrition process of host plants” was corroborated.

Free Research Field

植物系統分類学