Synergistic Effects of <i>Rhizophagus irregularis</i> and <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> Co-Inoculation on Enhancing Drought Tolerance and Secondary Metabolite Production in Licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>)
Drought stress significantly hinders the cultivation of medicinal plants such as licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>), valued for its bioactive compounds, glycyrrhizin, and liquiritin. This study aims to investigate how co-inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus <i>Rhizop...
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2025-06-01
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| author | Kangxu Zhang Mengyao Sun Haiyan Feng Xia Wei Wei Xie Wei Fu Lanping Guo Xin Zhang Zhipeng Hao Baodong Chen |
| author_facet | Kangxu Zhang Mengyao Sun Haiyan Feng Xia Wei Wei Xie Wei Fu Lanping Guo Xin Zhang Zhipeng Hao Baodong Chen |
| author_sort | Kangxu Zhang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Drought stress significantly hinders the cultivation of medicinal plants such as licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>), valued for its bioactive compounds, glycyrrhizin, and liquiritin. This study aims to investigate how co-inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus <i>Rhizophagus irregularis</i> and <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> can enhance licorice drought tolerance and secondary metabolite production, providing insights for sustainable agriculture in arid regions. The results demonstrate that inoculation with <i>R. irregularis</i> significantly improved biomass, drought stress tolerance, and increased glycyrrhizin and liquiritin concentrations by 29.9% and 3.3-fold, respectively, particularly under drought conditions. Co-inoculation with <i>T. harzianum</i> further boosted glycyrrhizin yield by 93.7%, indicating a synergistic relationship between the two microbes. The expression of key biosynthetic genes, including squalene synthase (<i>SQS1</i>) for glycyrrhizin and chalcone synthase (<i>CHS</i>) for liquiritin, was significantly upregulated, enhancing water use efficiency and the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. Nutrient analysis showed improved phosphorus uptake, alongside reduced root carbon and nitrogen concentrations, leading to greater nutrient utilization efficiency. These findings suggest that co-inoculating <i>R. irregularis</i> and <i>T. harzianum</i> is a promising approach to improving licorice growth and medicinal quality under drought stress, with broad applications for sustainable crop management. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-8b4e23ac22334dde8f4fb2f769d1e029 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2309-608X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Journal of Fungi |
| spelling | doaj-art-8b4e23ac22334dde8f4fb2f769d1e0292025-08-20T02:45:37ZengMDPI AGJournal of Fungi2309-608X2025-06-0111748810.3390/jof11070488Synergistic Effects of <i>Rhizophagus irregularis</i> and <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> Co-Inoculation on Enhancing Drought Tolerance and Secondary Metabolite Production in Licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>)Kangxu Zhang0Mengyao Sun1Haiyan Feng2Xia Wei3Wei Xie4Wei Fu5Lanping Guo6Xin Zhang7Zhipeng Hao8Baodong Chen9State Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, ChinaSchool of Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences (Beijing), Beijing 100083, ChinaFoshan IronMan Environmental Technology Co., Ltd., Foshan 528051, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, ChinaState Key Laboratory for Quality Ensurance and Sustainable Use of Dao-di Herbs, National Resource Center for Chinese Materia Medica, China Academy of Chinese Medical Science, Beijing 100700, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Regional and Urban Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, ChinaDrought stress significantly hinders the cultivation of medicinal plants such as licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>), valued for its bioactive compounds, glycyrrhizin, and liquiritin. This study aims to investigate how co-inoculation with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus <i>Rhizophagus irregularis</i> and <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> can enhance licorice drought tolerance and secondary metabolite production, providing insights for sustainable agriculture in arid regions. The results demonstrate that inoculation with <i>R. irregularis</i> significantly improved biomass, drought stress tolerance, and increased glycyrrhizin and liquiritin concentrations by 29.9% and 3.3-fold, respectively, particularly under drought conditions. Co-inoculation with <i>T. harzianum</i> further boosted glycyrrhizin yield by 93.7%, indicating a synergistic relationship between the two microbes. The expression of key biosynthetic genes, including squalene synthase (<i>SQS1</i>) for glycyrrhizin and chalcone synthase (<i>CHS</i>) for liquiritin, was significantly upregulated, enhancing water use efficiency and the biosynthesis of secondary metabolites. Nutrient analysis showed improved phosphorus uptake, alongside reduced root carbon and nitrogen concentrations, leading to greater nutrient utilization efficiency. These findings suggest that co-inoculating <i>R. irregularis</i> and <i>T. harzianum</i> is a promising approach to improving licorice growth and medicinal quality under drought stress, with broad applications for sustainable crop management.https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/11/7/488microbial symbiosissustainable cultivationbioactive compound accumulationbiosynthetic genesnutrient stoichiometry |
| spellingShingle | Kangxu Zhang Mengyao Sun Haiyan Feng Xia Wei Wei Xie Wei Fu Lanping Guo Xin Zhang Zhipeng Hao Baodong Chen Synergistic Effects of <i>Rhizophagus irregularis</i> and <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> Co-Inoculation on Enhancing Drought Tolerance and Secondary Metabolite Production in Licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>) Journal of Fungi microbial symbiosis sustainable cultivation bioactive compound accumulation biosynthetic genes nutrient stoichiometry |
| title | Synergistic Effects of <i>Rhizophagus irregularis</i> and <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> Co-Inoculation on Enhancing Drought Tolerance and Secondary Metabolite Production in Licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>) |
| title_full | Synergistic Effects of <i>Rhizophagus irregularis</i> and <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> Co-Inoculation on Enhancing Drought Tolerance and Secondary Metabolite Production in Licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>) |
| title_fullStr | Synergistic Effects of <i>Rhizophagus irregularis</i> and <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> Co-Inoculation on Enhancing Drought Tolerance and Secondary Metabolite Production in Licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>) |
| title_full_unstemmed | Synergistic Effects of <i>Rhizophagus irregularis</i> and <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> Co-Inoculation on Enhancing Drought Tolerance and Secondary Metabolite Production in Licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>) |
| title_short | Synergistic Effects of <i>Rhizophagus irregularis</i> and <i>Trichoderma harzianum</i> Co-Inoculation on Enhancing Drought Tolerance and Secondary Metabolite Production in Licorice (<i>Glycyrrhiza uralensis</i>) |
| title_sort | synergistic effects of i rhizophagus irregularis i and i trichoderma harzianum i co inoculation on enhancing drought tolerance and secondary metabolite production in licorice i glycyrrhiza uralensis i |
| topic | microbial symbiosis sustainable cultivation bioactive compound accumulation biosynthetic genes nutrient stoichiometry |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/11/7/488 |
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