<b>Arbuscular Mycorrhizas: Physiology and Function.</b> Edited by Yoram Kapulnik &amp; David D. Douds Jnr. 16 × 24 cm, 372 pp. Dordrecht, the Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers (http://www.kap.nl), 2000. £99. ISBN 07923 6444 9 (hardback).

This book appears at a timely interval after the publication of the 2nd Edition of Smith & Read's Mycorrhizal Symbiosis (1997), the ‘mycorrhizologists bible’. The field of mycorrhizal research, and in particular the study of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF), has been turbo-charged (> 400 primary publications since January 2000) by recent technological advances and a wider appreciation of the important role of these fungi in plant nutrition, particularly in more extensive agricultural systems. There are 15 chapters providing excellent coverage of most aspects of the biology of AMF, suitable for both the more experienced scientist and newcomers to the field. The authors represent members of many of the best-established AMF labs in the USA, Europe and beyond. The basic design of the book is user-friendly with clear headings/subheadings for navigation and browsing. The book is well-produced with very few typographical and referencing errors. A comprehensive index at the back provides the reader with useful shortcuts to access information on particular subjects. The use of the numerical (Vancouver) citation system does allow uninterrupted reading, though it is more difficult to get a feel for the timescale of scientific developments. Although published in 2000, the inevitable delays in the editing of a volume to which over 20 authors have contributed have resulted in the inclusion of only a few references published in 1999. The nutritional role of AMF is well-known and a number of chapters describe recent developments in the study of nutrient uptake by the extraradical mycelium (George, Ch 14), the transport of phosphate (Saito, Ch 5) and the ‘carbon’ cost to the plant of hosting AMF (Douds et al., Ch 6). What is particularly exciting about the field of AMF research at present, however, is that an understanding is beginning to emerge of the broader effects of these organisms. For example, Miller & Jastrow (Ch 1) describe the effects of AMF on soil structure, while Gryndler (Ch 11) illustrates how AMF influence and are influenced by other components of the soil biota. Of particular interest to plant pathologists are the chapters by Dumas-Gaudot et al. (Ch 9) and Lindermann (Ch 15), describing the effects of AMF on host defence systems and disease tolerance, respectively. The mechanisms whereby the host is able to differentiate between beneficial AMF and potentially harmful pathogenic fungi are of considerable interest to scientists involved in programmes to develop disease-resistant crops, since cultivars bred for improved disease resistance (usually in high-input systems where the beneficial effects of AMF are reduced) may inadvertently be selected to exclude AMF. Changes in levels of expression of several pathogenesis-related (PR) genes have been observed (usually slight up-regulation), although the question of how AMF modulate host defence responses remains unanswered. There is also evidence from several pathosystems that AMF infection confers a degree of resistance to both root and foliar pathogens. Lindermann (Ch 15) addresses the question of whether this is due to induced systemic resistance, PR gene up-regulation, competition for infection sites on the root and/or various other factors, e.g. improved plant nutrition. Again, there is no consensus (probably because these bioprotective effects have been examined in diverse pathosystems), but the various lines of evidence are clearly presented and discussed. The possible interactions between AMF and pathogenic fungi raise many intriguing ideas for both pure and applied avenues of research. Because some 80% of plant taxa are host to AMF, we commend this book to any pathologists wishing to learn more about the current state of knowledge of these organisms.

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